Shows
DigFin VOXDigital B2B Wealth | Alex Ypsilanti, Quantifeed | DigFin VOX Ep. 90Alex Ypsilanti is CEO of Quantifeed, a Hong Kong-based wealthtech company that helps financial institutions with digitalized wealth solutions, for private and retail banks’ relationship managers, for asset managers (the manufacturers of fund products), and for financial advisors serving high-net-worth clients.He spoke with DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio about trends in B2B wealthtech and how Quantifeed navigates relationships with its clients; the ongoing drive for growth; issues around data and insight; and how he sees the interplay with specialist B2C wealthtech companies.Ypsilanti provides a window into how fintech is growing in Asia and i...2025-03-0628 minDigFin VOXDigital asset stories | Serotonin.co | VOX Ep. 89Amanda Cassatt and Caroline York of Serotonin.io speak with DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio about their digital-marketing venture catering to both startups and financial institutions involved in emergent technologies.Crypto relies on narrative more than a traditional financial product. Amanda and Caroline discuss the ways that conventional banks and institutions are adopting new ways to reach consumers, particularly younger, mobile-savvy people.Amanda lays out the big trends, including AI agents and other disruptive tools, while Caroline describes the evolving nature of fintech in Asia.2025-02-1431 minDigFin VOXVC's outlook on fintechVenture GP Evan Thorpe discusses how fintech is changing and how he’s investing in the space in Asia.2024-11-2138 minDigFin VOXWealthtech past and future | Chandrima Das, TeleskopWealthtech entrepreneur Chandrima Das has a new startup, Teleskop, whose evolution tracks her own story.2024-11-0837 minDigFin VOXPayments, crypto and dollars | Yam-ki Chan, CircleCircle’s Yam-ki Chan discusses stablecoin regulations, business models, and role in payments.2024-10-1136 minDigFin VOXAsset-mgmt tech | Chetan Karkhanis, Franklin TempletonChetan Karkhanis, head of ventures in APAC at Franklin Templeton, talks tech in asset management.2024-08-0835 minDigFin VOXAI shakes FIs and startups | Shameek KunduWith experience in startups and as a bank CDO, Shameek Kundu explains how genAI is impacting fintech.2024-07-2532 minDigFin VOXCrypto custody questions | Alessio Quaglini, Hex TrustCustody is even more critical in crypto than in TradFi, argues Alessio Quaglini, founder of Hex Trust.2024-07-1134 minDigFin VOXChanging banks, and money | Hubert Knapp, ChavanetteHubert Knapp of Chavanette Advisors discusses the deeper implications of CBDCs on commercial banking.2024-07-0538 minDigFin VOXBhutan's digital identity | Ujjwal Deep Dahal, DIHThe CEO of Bhutan’s sovereign wealth fund talks about building out decentralized digital identity.2024-06-2037 minDigFin VOXAre CBDCs quantum safe? | Amnon Samid, BitMintDigital-money pioneer Amnon Samid argues CBDC projects based on DLT are on the wrong track.2024-06-1346 minDigFin VOXLessons From Bambu | Ned PhillipsNed Phillips shares lessons from Bambu, the B2B wealthtech in Singapore that has shut its doors.2024-05-1328 minDigFin VOXHSBC tokenizes gold | Bugra CelikHSBC’s Bugra Celik describes how the bank has tokenized gold investing for retail, why, and what’s next.2024-05-0226 minDigFin VOXExpanding Wise in Asia | SK Saraogi | DigFin VOX Ep. 77Wise’s SK Saraogi talks platforms versus remittances, new products, and new competition in Asia.2024-04-1232 minDigFin VOXBuilding insurance super-apps | Sebastien Gaudin, CareVoiceSebastien Gaudin of insurtech The CareVoice discusses how insurers are engaging digitally – and about his $10m funding raise.2024-04-0430 minDigFin VOXPhilippines Digital Banking | Kalidas Ghose, UNOKalidas Ghose of UNO Digital Bank discusses the latest fund-raise and challenges in the Philippines.2024-03-2131 minDigFin VOXAutomating Asian fixed incomeLaurent Ischi of Tradeweb describes how automation is expanding opportunities in trading Asia bonds.2024-03-1530 minDigFin VOXRegTech in 2024Jacqueline Pang of Artius and Claus Christensen of Know Your Customer talk regtech developments for 2024.2024-02-1538 minDigFin VOXThe future of Octopus | Tim Ying, CEO | DigFin VOX Ep. 72Octopus CEO Tim Ying talks about new pain points to solve, from cross-border payments to personal finance.2024-02-0131 minDigFin VOXHow are insurers digitizing? | Adrit Raha, CoverGoRaha Adrit of CoverGo discusses how insurers’ needs for digitalization are changing, along with the tech.2024-01-2531 minDigFin VOXFaster payments + rewards | Julian Anderson, DivitJulian Anderson, co-founder of Divit, talks about combining merchant acquiring with real-time payments.2024-01-1832 minDigFin VOXTokenization | Florian Spiegl, EvidentFlorian Spiegl of Evident Capital discusses why asset tokenization is on the rise.2023-12-1430 minDigFin VOXOpen banking | Jessica Liu & Ankit Suri, PlantoThe co-founders of Hong Kong personal-finance app Planto discuss how they’ve expanded to B2B.2023-10-2329 minDigFin VOXFintech VC | Herston Powers, 1982 Ventures | DigFin VOX Ep. 67Herston Powers is co-founder and partner at 1982 Ventures, a Singapore-based venture capital firm that focuses on fintech.Herston says now is a great time for seed investing into new fintech companies in Southeast Asia. He is backing the next wave of founders, many coming out of the region's giant e-commerce businesses.He discusses what sectors of fintech are attractive, the state of fund-raising in today's tough macro environment, and the future of IPO opportunities.Timecodes:0:00 - Herston Powers, 1982 Ventures1:03 - Founding a VC company focused on fintech5:15...2023-10-0331 minDigFin VOXFees | Bharat Malesha, SmartStream | DigFin VOX Ep. 66Sell-side firms are coming to grips with fees and expenses by gaining visibility over their trading costs.2023-08-2825 minDigFin VOXWealthtech Endowus | Samuel Rhee | DigFin VOX Ep. 65Sam Rhee, co-founder of Endowus, discusses fund raising, growth versus profits, and disrupting private banks.2023-08-2136 minDigFin VOXPropTech x Fintech | Ariel Shtarkman | DigFin VOX Ep. 64PropTech venture investor Ariel Shtarkman talks ESG, wealthtech and tokenization in Asia real estate.2023-08-1528 minDigFin VOXDigital bancassurance | George Kesselman | DigFin VOX Ep. 63Bancassurance is all about selling insurance products through banks. The banking channel has become extremely important to insurers throughout Asia. We are seeing the first steps toward digitizing bancassurance, which means end-to-end automation and personalization of the selling of insurance products to bank customers.George Kesselman, Singapore-based founder of Asia InsurTech Association, tells Jame DiBiasio why digitizing bancassurance is now on the table, and what that means for making products, targeting new business segments, and the balance of power between banks and insurance companies.Timecodes:0:00 – George Kesselman, Asia InsurTech Association1:56 – The beginning of digitized bancassurance3:27 – Simple versus co...2023-07-0329 minDigFin VOXChatGPT's fintech ideas | Guillaume Huet | DigFin VOX Ep. 62DigFin teamed up with Guillaume Huet to explore how ChatGPT can help fintechs with business ideas.Guillaume Huet is an A.I. and data specialist and consultant.We asked ChatGPT to recommend the optimal business model if we were to launch a fintech startup today, with the goal of reaching $100 million in annual revenues within five years.Huet used his prompt process to get a deeper, more insightful response. Along the way we learned more about how language-learning models work, and discussed many of the ideas that it presented us.Timecodes:0:00...2023-06-1530 minDigFin VOXGini's pivot | Victor Lang & Ray Wyand | DigFin VOX Ep. 61Fintechs often need to change business strategy to survive. Co-founders Victor Lang and Ray Wyand discuss how they realized their earlier versions of their fintech, Gini, was not working – and how they eventually found a product that could scale.Wyand and Lang tell Jame DiBiasio the issues they have faced in both B2C and B2B markets, the challenges of going market by market, and what kind of revenues a VC-backed startup has to aim for.They also share how they have worked with their investors, the solution they have found, and new challenges ar...2023-06-1226 minDigFin VOXFemtech | Maaike Steinebach | DigFin VOX Ep. 60Maaike Steinebach is founder of Femtech Futures, a Hong Kong-based venture investment firm supporting startups in the tech space dedicated to women’s health and wellbeing.Steinebach tells Jame DiBiasio about her journey from fintech to femtech, and how they are similar. She discusses the opportunity set, including backing B2B and B2C startups, and where she sees the space headed.She puts femtech into the context of Web3, data sovereignty, and digital identity – particularly in the context of Asia’s many societies.Timecodes:0:00 – Maaike Steinebach, Femtech Futures2:15 – From fintech to femtech: Maaike’s journey3:56 ...2023-05-2926 minDigFin VOX"StripeGPT" | Paul Harapin, Stripe | DigFin VOX Ep. 59Paul Harapin is APAC leader at payments fintech Stripe.He discusses two topics: how Stripe is leveraging artificial intelligence, and its roadmap in Asia Pacific.Harapin tells DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio that Stripe is incorporating ChatGPT and other language-learning models. This is partly to support clients such as ChatGPT’s creator, OpenAI, but also to help derive better outcomes in Stripe’s business.Following layoffs at the company in the wake of the tech crash, Harapin outlines Stripe’s priorities in Asia and where the company sees innovation from the region making its way to ot...2023-05-2325 minDigFin VOX"Healthspans" | Gourab Mukherjee, Aktivo | DigFin VOX Ep. 58Gourab Mukherjee is co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based insurtech Aktivo Labs. Aktivo provides wellness apps to insurance companies and reinsurers that are meant to help change people’s behavior.As Mukherjee explains to Jame DiBiasio, about 30% of longevity is within people’s control. Smoking, substance abuse and poor diet, versus good diets, exercise, and getting a decent night’s sleep all impact our health. And digital technology is getting better at turning that into scores that insurers use to price policies.But are these apps really changing behavior? Are they personalized enough to be effective? As the...2023-05-1525 min
Milk Road podcastJame DiBiasio of DigFin – Tech on Finance Expert Moving Investors at BOAOJame DiBiasio shares his wisdom on our Milk Road podcast.
Link to Jame's 2 minute clip about Finance in the Climate Change space on YouTube is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BsdPBulXtxU2023-05-131h 03DigFin VOXTokenized deposits | Naveen Mallela, J.P. Morgan, DigFin VOX Ep 57Naveen Mallela of JP Morgan explains how tokenized deposits will enable commercial banking on blockchain.2023-05-0430 minDigFin VOXGreat transitions | Emmanuel Daniel | DigFin VOX Ep. 56Emmanuel Daniel is author of "The Great Transition: The Personalization of Finance is Here".He discusses the themes of his book (reviewed here) detailing how technology renders financial intermediaries unprofitable, and the need for both banks and fintechs to reassess what value they deliver to customers."ED" is founder of The Asian Banker, a Singapore-based business magazine for consumer and corporate banks. He has been delivering forward-looking speeches at his events for years and has now encapsulated his thinking into "The Great Transition".He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about why personalization and data ar...2023-04-2630 minDigFin VOXTokenization | Alice Chen & Julian Kwan | DigFin VOX Ep. 55Alice Chen and Julian Kwan are co-founders of InvestaX, a Singapore-based fintech focused on digital-asset tokenization.Chen and Kwan discuss the evolution of tokenization, as a concept and a real-world activity, and how that is different from crypto markets. They discuss the future of financial intermediaries and the role of smart contracts.They also talk about Asia’s return to the spotlight in wake of regulatory battles over crypto in the US, and what should happen next to help tokenization become a mainstream reality.Timecodes:0:00 – Julian Kwan and Alice Chen1:45 – Founding InvestaX and bridging TradFi a...2023-04-2031 minDigFin VOXAI+Web3 | Dusan Stojanovic | DigFin VOX Ep. 54Dušan Stojanović and his colleagues at True Global Ventures invest in blockchain and artificial-intelligence companies, backing many businesses in Web3 and metaverse-themed businesses.He spoke with Jame DiBiasio about the convergence of generative AI models (such as ChatGPT) and Web3 businesses as a medium-term play. In the short term he is investing in AI businesses that sell to non-tech companies.Stojanović talks about how startups are faring against giant corporations, data uses, and how the tools of AI are transforming the business of venture capital.Timecodes0:00 – Dušan Stojanović, True Global Ventures2:40 – Framing a medium-te...2023-04-0634 minDigFin VOXDigitizing loans | Bertrand Billon, iLex | DigFin VOX Ep. 53Bertrand Billon is founder of Singapore-based fintech iLex, which is pioneering a digital platform for syndicated loans and other forms of private debt.Loans, unlike bonds, are designed to be bespoke, and traditionally have been difficult to trade. iLex is trying to foster a digital marketplace among private capital players and banks, to create new sources of liquidity in loans.Billon speaks with Jame DiBiasio about the challenges of creating such a platform from scratch and the possibilities for transforming this large but opaque segment of capital markets.Timecodes:0:00 – Bertrand Billon, iLex02:09 – Why haven’t loans...2023-03-2328 minDigFin VOXCrypto data | Ambre Soubiran, Kaiko | DigFin VOX Ep. 52Ambre Soubiran is founder of Kaiko, which provides market data on crypto to institutional investors.She talks about the impact on the digital-assets industry from the closure of crypto-friendly banks in the US, why banks are still building infrastructure for digital assets, and the promise of smart contracts for traditional structured products and derivatives.Soubiran looks at challenges such as public versus private blockchains, how to source data from blockchains, standards, and interoperability.Timecodes:0:00 – Ambre Soubiran, Kaiko2:00 – Data for smart contracts and founding Kaiko5:18 – Pace of banks adopting blockchain infrastructure8:12 – Public versus private, permissioned chains11:16 ...2023-03-1630 minDigFin VOXPayments in Asia | Monica Jasuja | DigFin VOX Ep. 51Monica Jasuja is an engineer and product manager who has led payments teams at PayPal, Mastercard, GoTo and elsewhere. She is one of the most knowledgeable people in the region when it comes to fintech.Jasuja speaks with Jame DiBiasio about the key trends in the post-Covid era. Her analysis is balanced, noting the failure by many fintechs, banks, and governments to change consumer habits away from cash. On the other hand she discusses where she sees great potential for uptake.As she goes through changing business models, Jasuja also touches on the implications for...2023-03-0932 minDigFin VOXVirtual cards | Kevin Kang, Reap | DigFin VOX Ep. 50 CUSTOMIZEKevin Kang, co-founder of payments fintech Reap, discusses the trends behind virtual cards for SME and enterprise users.This is a segment of the fintech segment industry that brings credit-card like features to businesses using credit to manage working capital and cash needs. How big is it, and how disruptive?Kevin discusses with Jame DiBiasio the market’s trajectory post Covid, compares it to traditional card and transaction banking businesses, and Reap’s funding situation.Timecodes:0:00 – Kevin Kang, Reap1:55 – Fintech business after Covid5:15 – What’s a virtual card, pricing, fees, e...2023-02-0231 minDigFin VOXESG outlook | Helene Li, GoImpact | DigFin VOX Ep. 49Helene Li is co-founder and CEO of GoImpact, a startup advisory and investment firm focused on sustainable finance.She spoke with DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio about the state of ESG in Asia, the role of fintech, and reasons why financial institutions will be able to manage ESG exposures more effectively.Timecodes0:00 – Helene Li, GoImpact1:33 – State of ESG in Asia2:46 – The different roles of Hong Kong and Singapore8:18 – Convergence among standards and investment practices13:36 – ESG transformation versus digital transformation16:16 – Pricing carbon markets and integrating them into balance sheets19:43 – What’s needed to accelerate change22:10 – The role of fintech25:10 – Important skil...2023-01-2029 minDigFin VOXInsurers fall behind | Ben Quinlan | DigFin VOX Ep. 48Benjamin Quinlan of Quinlan & Associates argues that Hong Kong’s incumbent insurance companies are now at risk of losing market share if they do not adopt digital, direct-to-consumer businesses.Quinlan discusses the rise of virtual insurance companies, which are bringing policies to market that are cheaper and sometimes better.He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about the costs of maintaining the status quo, the possibility that incumbents will opt to maintain agency networks, and the challenges of digital transformation.Timecodes:0:00 – Benjamin Quinlan, Quinlan & Associates1:00 – Why Hong Kong’s insurance companies must go direct to consumer4:33 – Early uses of d...2022-12-1424 minDigFin VOXEM fintech VC | Ganesh Rengaswamy, Quona | DigFin VOX Ep. 47Ganesh Rengaswamy is managing partner at Quona Capital, based in Bangalore. His VC firm has just raised a fund focused on fintech in emerging markets.Rengaswamy speaks with Jame DiBiasio about why invest in fintech now, making decisions in the new macro environment, and what fintech business models look attractive – and which do not.He also discusses how fintech can scale across the region, the importance of public digital infrastructure, and the rewards of backing companies that drive financial inclusion.Timecodes:0:00 – Ganesh Rengaswamy, Quona Capital1:45 – Why raise a fintech fund, and why now4:05 – Standalone versus embe...2022-12-0133 minDigFin VOXMicro in Indonesia | Andi Taufan, Amartha | DigFin VOX Ep. 46Andi Taufan, founder and CEO of Jakarta-based fintech Amartha, discusses financial inclusion and creating digital financial services for the unbanked.Many of his customers (both individuals and small businesses) in Indonesia don’t even own a mobile phone, let alone have a bank account, and they depend on cash. How is he building a digital world for them?Taufan talks about his hybrid business between offline and online, giving people access to digital finance, and the surprisingly lucrative business and investment returns this can create.Timecodes:0:00 – Andi Taufan Garuda Putra, Amartha1:01 – Amartha’s founding and buildi...2022-11-2426 minDigFin VOXVC in fintech | Mark Munoz, Vectr | DigFin VOX Ep. 45Mark Munoz is managing partner at Vectr Fintech Partners, a global venture-capital firm based in Hong Kong.Munoz speaks with Jame DiBiasio about the new, challenging macro conditions for startups and VCs, the new landscape for valuations, and his approach to investing in fintech companies in Asia.Munoz also discusses his take on digital assets, artificial intelligence, and what he’s looking for in the next pitch deck.Timecodes:0:00 – Mark Munoz, Vectr Fintech Partners1:40 – Comparing today’s turmoil to the Dot-Com bust4:46 – Macro impact on Vectr’s portfolio6:56 – How company valuations in Asia are changing9:56 – VC...2022-11-1727 minDigFin VOXMastercard in Asia | Ari Sarker | DigFin VOX Ep. 44How are the global payments companies, which built their legacy business on credit cards, growing in Asia?Ari Sarker, president for Asia Pacific at Mastercard, tells Jame DiBiasio what opportunities are emerging for his industry. He discusses the economic outlook and managing the risks of deglobalization, along with the opportunities of e-commerce and digital economies in Asia.He says debit now makes up as much business as credit cards, and describes how the firm is positioning itself to support financial inclusion, narrow the digital divide in societies, and find ways to drive new businesses....2022-11-1026 minDigFin VOXCBDC Aurum | Benedicte Nolens, BIS | DigFin VOX Ep. 43Benedicte Nolens is head of the Hong Kong Innovation Hub at the Bank of International Settlements. Her team has just released technical details for the workings of retail and wholesale central-bank digital currencies: digital cash. The project is called “Aurum”, Latin for gold.Nolens, a former Goldman Sachs compliance head and fintech regulator at the Securities and Futures Commission, is at the forefront of CBDC research in Asia.She speaks with DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio about CBDC design choices, why many central banks are going to adopt them, and the particular experience in Hong Kong that ca...2022-10-2829 minDigFin VOXFuture of robo | Kelvin Lei, Aaumon | DigFin VOX Ep. 42How quickly will robo-advisory take off in Asia?\Kelvin Lei is co-founder of Magnum Research, the Hong Kong company behind Aqumon, a robo-advisor business that caters both to wealth managers and has a direct consumer platform.Aqumon is also notable for working for banks both in mainland China and externally.Lei discusses with Jame DiBiasio why robo and wealthtech is growing fast in Hong Kong, the opportunities for Hong Kong-mainland integrated business (“the Greater Bay Area”) and the next drivers of the industry.Timecodes0:00 – Kelvin Lei, Aqumon1:08 – State of robo advisory in Asia3:16 –...2022-10-0728 minDigFin VOXDigitizing trade | Jesse Chenard, MonetaGo | DigFin VOX Ep. 41Jesse Chenard is founder of MonetaGo, a Singapore-based fintech specializing in digitizing trade and detecting fraud.Chenard discusses his career with Jame DiBiasio, beginning with his entrepreneurial history in video advertizing and his eventual move into fintech.He talks about the startup’s various pivots, including starting as a blockchain solution but evolving more to a cloud-based software provider for financial services.Chenard also touches on the business’s early days in India, its partnership with SWIFT, and its new onboarding with global banks.Timecodes:0:00 – Jesse Chenard, MonetaGo0:59 – Early tech career, inventing video ad t...2022-09-2934 minDigFin VOXState of robo | Ned Philips, Bambu | DigFin VOX Ep. 40Ned Phillips, co-founder and CEO of Singapore-based Bambu, discusses the state of robo-advisory business in Asia.Based in Singapore, Bambu is one of several leading B2B wealthtechs, designing A.I.-led investment solutions for financial institutions to serve to their consumers.Phillips speaks with DigFin‘s Jame DiBiasio about growth in the business, its impact on banks’ traditional role as distributors of investment products, and how it is changing the way asset management companies see their role. He concludes with why robo needs to stay boring even if that means short-term underperformance for th...2022-09-2226 minDigFin VOXNeo-banking X-Border | Coen Jonker, Tyme | DigFin VOX Ep. 39Coenraad Jonker is CEO of Tyme Bank, a neo-bank that originated in South Africa and is now serving customers in the Philippines.Coen speaks with Jame DiBiasio about how challenger banks can be profitable while pursuing goals around financial inclusion, as well as the business, data and tech models required to succeed.Tyme has a hybrid model involving in-store kiosks that gives it a twist in the market. He outlines the factors that made Tyme decide to enter the Philippines and why it is also now looking to get a license in Pakistan, and concludes...2022-09-1530 minDigFin VOXCustody for digital assets | Swen Werner & Irfan Ahmad | DigFin VOX Ep. 38Custody for digital assets remains a hurdle for licensed financial institutions. Swen Werner and Irfan Ahmad of State Street Digital speak with Jame DiBiasio about the challenges of a traditional custodian building a new way of doing business in the world of digital assets.The premise of peer-to-peer crypto is for users to "be your own bank". But institutions have compliance, risk, and licensing requirements that require a third-party custodian.There are also issues around how to reimagine custody for assets that are currently either stored in hot wallets...2022-09-0131 minDigFin VOXInstitutional blockchain | Nicole Olson & Patrick Campos | DigFin VOX Ep. 37How close are financial institutions to operating on blockchain rails – and why do they want to be there? Nicole Olson and Patrick Campos speak with Jame DiBiasio about foundational changes.Nicole is with State Street Digital, the new division at the global custodian bank, working on product design and innovation. She discusses how State Street is approaching blockchain to serve asset managers and asset owners, and how the technology is sweeping through the industry.Joining her is Patrick from Securrency, a blockchain-related technology company that works with banks such as...2022-08-1829 minDigFin VOXBank-backed fintech | Alex Manson, SC Ventures | DigFin VOX Ep. 36Alex Manson is a leader at SC Ventures, the fintech venture arm of Standard Chartered Bank.He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about SCV's structure, which is partly corporate venture, partly venture capital fund, and partly an incubator of the bank's own "intrapreneurs". SCV now has about 30 portfolio companies, from trade finance to digital assets.Alex discusses how SCV defines success, its impact on the parent bank, its investments in licensed digital banking businesses, and what's next.Timecodes:0:00 - Alex Manson, SC Ventures1:31 - Le...2022-08-1132 minDigFin VOXDeep change in asset mgmt | Scott Treloar, Noviscient | DigFin VOX Ep. 35Scott Treloar is founder of Noviscient, a fintech that is creating digital solutions for asset managers.Treloar, who has a background in asset management, discusses why it's been difficult for the industry to go digital, and what Novsicient is bringing to the space.He describes how technology makes it easier to allow emerging managers – often the ones with the best performance compared to large, more marketing-oriented businesses – to provide their strategies to big institutional investors.Timecodes:0:00 - Scott Treloar, Noviscient1:13 - Asset management compan...2022-08-0427 minDigFin VOXAI Regtech | Miles Wen, Fano Labs | DigFin VOX Ep. 34Miles Wen is CEO of Hong Kong startup Fano Labs, a developer of deep networks and other AI tools to understand voices - to translate what people say, as well as add insights around the context of those conversations. It's a service that financial institutions are using today for monitoring wealth managers, among other things.Wen speaks with Jame DiBiasio about the state of AI today, how banks are integrating (or struggling to integrate) AI solutions, regtech's growth prospects, and Fano Labs' going IPO.Timecodes:0:00 - Miles Wen and Fano...2022-07-2132 minDigFin VOXCiti's Tech Agenda | Stacey Lacy | DigFin VOX Ep. 33Stacey Lacy is managing director at Citi where she leads its technology and operations for Asia, including consumer and corporate banking, capital markets, and wealth management.A 25-year veteran at the bank, she is helping the bank digitize across all of its products, so as to better serve its clients and improve time to market.Lacy spoke with DigFIn's Jame DiBiasio about migrating operation to cloud, using data to personalize services, navigating Asia's data sovereignty laws, and partnering with fintechs. She concludes by explaining where financial institutions lie along...2022-07-1431 minDigFin VOXReal-time payments | Navin Gupta, Ripple | DigFin VOX Ep. 32Today in many countries we can send a payment locally with just a phone number or email address – so why can't companies do the same internationally?Navin Gupta, MD of Ripple for South Asia and MENA, speaks with DigFin's Jame DiBiasio about the technological and business race to solve this massive problem.He talks about the challenges, the benefits of a blockchain-based solution, the impact if we see central-bank digital currencies appear, dealing with regulators, and Ripple's progress.Timecodes:0:00 - Navin Gupta, Ripple and his care...2022-06-3030 minDigFin VOXDigital-dollar pilot | Jennifer O'Rourke, DTCC | DigFin VOX Ep. 31Jennifer O'Rourke is head of digital design and strategy at Depository Trust and Clearing Corp. She discusses DTCC's latest blockchain experiment, Project Lithium, to support the post-trade processing of a "digital dollar", should the Congress and Federal Reserve promote a US central-bank digital currency.Timecodes:0:00 - Jennifer O'Rourke, DTCC1:10 - Impact of innovation on financial services2:55 - Lessons from previous blockchain experiments5:01 - Why blockchain technology?7:19 - Project Lithium and supporting a digital dollar9:10 - Versus modernizing America's legacy infrastructure12:33 - Industry demand fo...2022-06-1738 minDigFin VOXBitcoin for institutions | Arian Chng, Fintonia | DigFin Group Ep. 30Adrian Chng is an investor in fintech companies whose group, Fintonia, is now focused on crypto – in particular, trying to bridge the traditional world of finance with Bitcoin. He spoke with Jame DiBiasio about Fintonia's ambitions and what the crypto industry looks like in the wake of recent turmoil, such as the collapse of a leading stablecoin.Timecodes:0:00 - Adrian Chng, Fintonia1:31 - From banking to fintech4:55 - Investing in the thesis of mainstream Bitcoin6:43 - The stability of payments using crypto9:16 - Bridging traditional finance and Bitc...2022-06-0932 minDigFin VOXMastercard's strategy in Asia | Rama Sridhar | DigFin VOX Ep. 29Rama Sridhar is responsible for all of Mastercard's new payments, emerging tech, and digital solutions in Asia Pacific. She speaks with DigFin's Jame DiBiasio about how technology is changing the way Mastercard makes decisions, exciting changes afoot in payments, and the massive opportunities as millions of people diversify from relying solely on cash.Timecodes:0:00 - Rama Sridhar, Mastercard1:20 - Sridhar's career in tech, banking, payments – and tech again2:41 - How technology now drives decision-making3:29 - Legacy models, advantage or handicap?5:37 - Changes in the payments landscape, and how...2022-05-2630 minDigFin VOXFintech in ESG | Jason Tu, MioTech | DigFin VOX Ep. 28Jason Tu is founder of MioTech, one of Asia's pioneers in bringing data analytics to environmental, social and governance risk for investors and corporations. Jason speaks with DigFin's Jame DiBiasio about ESG trends, Asia's role, and how fintech and data are making new business models possible.Timecodes:0:00 - Jason Tu, MioTech1:10 - MioTech and ESG data2:22 - China/Asia ESG requirements4:34 - Pace of change for financial institutions6:39 - Some ESG factors count more than others!8:10 - Collecting ESG data9:56 - Stakeholder v. sh...2022-04-1419 minDigFin VOXState of crypto | Annabelle Huang, Amber Group | DigFin VOX Ep. 27Amber Group is a crypto business that moved to Singapore and is now backed by Temasek, among other investors, with a soaring valuation. Annabelle Huang, managing partner, discusses the firm's valuation and potential IPO plans, managing the changing regulatory landscape, and the extension of a prop-trading start to a new embrace of retail business.Timecodes:0:00 - Annabelle Huang, Amber Group1:54 - Amber expands out of pure institutional business4:20 - Institutional needs in crypto versus TradFi7:54 - Convergence between crypto and traditional finance9:07 - How Amber views regulatory un...2022-03-1728 minDigFin VOXBNPL's boom and bust | Ben Quinlan, Quinlan & Associates | DigFin VOX Ep. 26Ben Quinlan of Quinlan & Associates breaks down the big problem for buy-now pay-later fintechs: they don't make money, and never will, without substantive changes to the business model. Ben tells Jame DiBiasio what went wrong and how BNPL firms can find a path to long-term success.Timecodes:0:00 - Ben Quinlan, Quinlan & Associates1:34 - The threat to buy-now pay-later (BNPL)2:40 - Non-performing loans and funding issues4:11 - What makes BNPL a hot trend6:12 - Drivers of growth7:52 - Issues with balance sheets and merchant acquisition...2022-03-1026 minDigFin VOXPayments in Japan | Jack Momose, Degica | DigFin VOX Ep. 24Jack Momose, founder of Tokyo-based gaming company Degica, talks about payments and fintech in Japan, creating payments platform Komoju, and the challenges of going global.Timecodes:0:00 - Jack Momose, Degica1:13 - Japan's payments biz in the spotlight2:06 - Outdated tech stacks in Japan5:30 - The innovation scene in Japan8:00 - Entrepreneurs and startups in Japan10:11 - Degica's story14:40 - Cash and other payment methods16:41 - The birth of Komoju18:45 - Size of the business19:26 - Going international...2022-02-2429 minDigFin VOXDigital insurance | Charles Hung, Blue | DigFin VOX Ep. 23Blue is a purely digital life insurance company. CEO Charles Hung tells Jame DiBiasio how the business is evolving, the use of data in marketing, competing versus incumbents, and his path to profitability.2022-02-1727 minDigFin VOXDigitizing private assets | Johnson Chen, CapBridge | DigFin VOX Ep. 22Johnson Chen is founder and CEO of Singapore fintech CapBridge Financial and its blockchain-infrastructure subsidiary 1X. CapBridge is enabling corporate bonds, unicorn-company equities, real estate and private-equity funds to be accessed and traded by family offices. Johnson speaks with Jame DiBiasio about building CapBridge's investor base and improving markets through next-gen technology.Timecodes:0:00 - Johnson Chen, CapBridge Financial1:30 - CapBridge's two business lines2:29 - Providing access to unicorn company equity3:20 - Fractionalizing private equity funds4:08 - Asian demand for private equity5:07 - Real estate...2022-02-1023 minDigFin VOXCrisis mode | Brad Jones, Wave Money | DigFin VOX Ep. 21Brad Jones is CEO of Wave Money, a digital payments fintech in Myanmar. In the past year the business has had to weather a military coup, telco outages, deadly Covid, and shareholder changes. Brad speaks with Jame DiBiasio about managing multiple crises and returning to a path of growth.Timecodes:0:00 - Brad Jones, Wave Money1:29 - Multiple shocks to the business2:50 - Crisis decision making6:06 - Keys to survival7:33 - Staying committed8:43 - Returning to business as usual9:54 - Ant Group transaction hit2022-01-2021 minDigFin VOXRising insurtech | Val Yap, PolicyPal | DigFin VOX Ep. 20Val Yap is founder and CEO of Singapore-based insurtech PolicyPal, a unit of AMTD Group. She tells Jame DiBiasio about her company's recent acquisition, growth plans, the state of insurtech today, and feedback from writing her memoir.Timecodes:0:00 - Val Yap, PolicyPal1:28 - PolicyPal's mission and evolution3:46 - Acquiring Value Champion5:08 - Entering new verticals5:24 - Creating new insurtech products7:14 - Platform competition10:55 - Winning customer attention and trust13:42 - Competing versus partnering with insurance cos.15:29 - State of...2022-01-1326 minDigFin VOXGaming & fintech | Gil Bashan, StrongNode | DigFin VOX Ep. 19Gaming, crypto, NFTs, the metaverse...what's it all about, and should this matter to the finance industry? Gil Bashan, chief product officer at U.S. tech company StrongNode, discusses the nexus between gaming and fintech with DigFin's Jame DiBiasio.2022-01-0622 min
Crypto Savvy: The EssentialsTrends in FinTech You Need to Know (ft. Jame DiBiasio)Cryptocurrency and FinTech are two rapidly changing sectors, and it can be hard to keep abreast with the latest happenings. There’s no better person to ask about trends and development in this market than Jame DiBiasio, the Founder and Editor of leading FinTech and digital asset publication DigFin, which was recently acquired by AMTD Digital. In this episode, he details his journey from crypto apprentice to guru, why blockchain and FinTech matters, how he writes about digital assets as well as other stories and projects that have stuck with him. Jame DiBiasio is the Founder and...2021-11-2531 minDigFin VOXRegtech trends | Ashish Rai, FIS Global | DigFin VOX Ep. 18Regtech – regulation technology – is now critical for financial institutions, but needs vary by market. Ashish Rai of FIS discusses the big-picture challenges in capital markets.Timecodes:0:00 - Ashish Rai, FIS1:13 - Trends in capital-markets regulation2:56 - Differences between Hong Kong and Singapore5:37 - Are back offices ready for compliance tech needs?7:10 - Regtech's strengths in capital markets8:25 - And its shortfalls; has A.I. delivered?10:33 - Banks and asset managers' benefits in future11:45 - Risk management in machine learning and regtech1...2021-11-1122 minDigFin VOXHong Kong unicorn | Simon Loong, WeLab | DigFin VOX Ep. 17WeLab operates a virtual bank in Hong Kong as well as banking, payments, and tech businesses in mainland China and Indonesia – with an IPO on the cards. Founder Simon Loong speaks with Jame DiBiasio about metrics for a virtual bank, doing business in the Greater Bay Area, and what's next.Timecodes:0:00 - Simon Loong, WeLab1:36 - Metrics for virtual banks2:57 - Comparing with incumbent banks5:27 - Fintech and virtual-bank lending practices6:52 - Is tech really a differentiator?8:54 - Incumbents also catching up in digital11...2021-10-2828 minDigFin VOXIntra-day liquidity | Nadeem Shamim, SmartStream | DigFin VOX Ep. 16Technology now makes it possible for banks to track and manage cash on an intra-day basis. Nadeem Shamim of SmartStream Technologies explains the benefits this brings to transaction bankers and their corporate clients – as well as the challenges of making this become an industry norm.Timecodes:0:00 - Nadeem Shamim, SmartStream Technologies1:16 - Liquidity lessons from COVID-193:08 - Understanding counterparty risk4:52 - Cash pledged, versus "pure" cash7:15 - Reducing operational losses11:31 - Managing market risks such as credit12:45 - What being ready for intraday li...2021-10-2120 minDigFin VOXInsurtech ambitions | Alvin Kwock, One Degree | DigFin VOX Ep. 15OneDegree has spun a niche business doing digital pet insurance in Hong Kong into a multi-pronged insurtech business that aims to be active in five continents within five years. Co-founder and CEO Alvin Kwock discusses the changing trends in insurance and insurtech, and his ambitions to transform OneDegree into a leading insurance player.Timecodes:0:00 - Alvin Kwock, OneDegree1:28 - The vision from Day One in 20167:14 - Getting started in pet insurance, the whys and hows13:16 - Extending into B2B for third-party insurers14:48 - What big insurance co...2021-10-1425 minDigFin VOXFaster payments and core systems | Roland Brandli, SmartStream | DigFin VOX Ep. 14Banks are now expected to provide instant payments and other services on demand. Roland Brandli explains this is creating pressures on legacy core systems that must now be changed. He is head of digital payment controls at SmartStream Technologies, helping banks around the world from his base in Dubai.Timecodes:0:00 - Roland Brandli, SmartStream1:03 - Unexpected impact of banks handling instant payments2:15 - The problem with international standards3:56 - Why systems aren't interoperable, yet4:51 - Hidden costs, competitive issues for legacy I.T.6:32 - Incumbent ba...2021-10-0726 minDigFin VOXFrom P2P to neobank | Kelvin Teo, Funding Societies | DigFin VOX Ep. 13Kelvin Teo is co-founder of Funding Societies, an SME-dedicated SaaS and platform lender, with operations in Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand. He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about plans to securitize loans, obtain a banking license, and issue credit cards – and a path to IPO.Timecodes:0:00 - Kelvin Teo, Funding Societies1:30 - P2P versus lending3:55 - How it works in different markets5:00 - Where do you get capital to lend?5:55 - How much skin in the game do you take?7:05 - Lessons from China on P2...2021-08-0924 minDigFin VOX"Cashless" and CBDCs | Richard Turrin, author | DigFin FOX Ep. 12Richard Turrin is a Shanghai-based consultant and author. He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about his latest book, "Cashless: China's Digital Currency Revolution", why digital currencies matter, and the relevance of China's fintech experience for the rest of the world.TImecodes:0:00 - Richard Turrin, "Cashless"01:08 - What makes central-bank digital currencies (CBDCs) useful4:11 - CBDCs versus our existing payments infrastructure5:41 - Use cases, benefits of digital currencies9:47 - Financial services in a world of digital currencies12:00 - Governments and programmable money15:07 - Cryptocurrency (eg Bi...2021-07-1526 minDigFin VOXBangkok Bank goes digital | Ian Gillard | DigFin VOX Ep. 11Ian Gillard is senior executive vice president at Bangkok Bank as well as a member of the board at blockchain vendor R3. He speaks with Jame DiBiasio about Bangkok Bank's digitization strategy as Thailand goes cashless.Timecodes:0:00 - Ian Gillard, Bangkok Bank1:10 - About Bangkok Bank2:39 - Bangkok Bank's first digital products3:09 - The bank goes mobile3:18 - Corporate versus consumer banking digitization4:30 - How well do you really know your consumers?7:13 - Gaining customer insight, the learning process8:06 - Where...2021-07-0822 min
DigFin VOXCredit Card Fintech | Nicki Ramsay, CardUp | DigFin VOX Ep 10Nicki Ramsay, founder of Singapore payments fintech CardUp, talks about making the leap into lending, drivers behind credit-card fintech, and challenges to the business.2021-05-3022 min
DigFin VOXMAS going green-tech | Sopnendu Mohanty | Monetary Authority of Singapore, DigFinVOX Ep. 9Regulator MAS is driving the financial-services industry to embrace sustainability – and that means a huge need for data, policy, and digital transformation, says Sopnendu Mohanty, MAS's chief fintech officer.2021-05-2025 min
DigFin VOXSandy Peng | Investing in blockchain | DigFin VOX Ep 8Sandy Peng, partner at Fission Capital, speaks with Jame about her investment strategy for blockchain tokens and companies.2021-05-1726 min
DigFin VOXKris Marszalek | Crypto.com goes mainstream | DigFin VOX Ep 7Can Crypto.com go from 10m users to 100m users? That's the goal of CEO Kris Marszalek. He speaks with Jame at DigFinVOX about what it takes. Hint: regulation!2021-05-1022 minDigFin VOXCross-border remittances | Venkatesh Saha | Wise | DigFin VOX Ep 6Payments fintech Wise must navigate a complicated network of regulators, competitors, and partners to grow cross-border payments in Asia Pacific, says Venkatesh Saha.2021-04-2918 min
DigFin VOX"Block Kong" | Charles D'Haussy | ConsenSys | DigFin VOX Ep 5Charles D'Haussy discusses his new book, "Block Kong", profiling 21 of Hong Kong's leading blockchain entrepreneurs.2021-04-2221 min
DigFin VOXDigital transformation of banks | Navin Suri | DigFin VOX Ep 4Why do banks still find digital transformation so hard – and can the process be improved? Navin Suri, co-founder of Percipient, a Singapore-based AI fintech, discusses transformation post-COVID, the new problems banks are facing with data, and what can help the process of bank/fintech collaboration.2021-04-1124 min
DigFin VOXCyber-risk in crypto | Michael Shaulov | DigFin VOX Ep. 3Michael Shaulov is founder of New York-based Fireblocks, a startup building infrastructure for crypto. Michael brings two decades of cyber-security and fintech experience to the world of digital assets. He talks about how security is evolving in crypto, his work on the Diem stablecoin, how to make digital assets greener, and how he will use the proceeds from Fireblocks's latest $133m Series C funding round.2021-04-0632 min
DigFin VOXMachine learning in finance | Andreas Burner | DigFin VOX Ep. 2Andreas Burner is chief innovation officer at SmartStream Technologies, where he leads development of artificial intelligence and other next-gen tech for financial institutions. Andreas discusses where AI and machine learning is at; how it is being used by banks, asset managers and insurers; challenges such as "explainability"; and how AI is combining with blockchain.2021-03-2630 min
DigFin VOXFintech in Singapore | Varun Mittal | DigFin VOX Ep. 1Varun Mittal discusses his book, "Singapore: The Fintech Nation"; his views on how fintech companies can scale in Southeast Asia; where capital is flowing; what would make for the ideal fintech startup in 2021.Varun is partner at EY and has worked at Ant, Samsung and Singtel.2021-03-1833 min
DigFin VOXDigFin VOX Trailer | Ep. 0Hello and welcome to DigFin VOX! Find out what we are all about.2021-03-1500 min
The Crime CafeInterview with Thriller Author Jame DiBiasio – S. 4, Ep. 5Author Debbi Mack interviews thriller author Jame DiBiasio on the Crime Cafe podcast.Please consider becoming a Patreon supporter so we can provide podcast transcripts. Thanks! :)Supporters get access to free books and stories, including my first novel, Identity Crisis, Donna Fletcher Crow's novel, A Very Private Grave, my short story "Jasmine", and advance looks at the third Sam McRae novel and my next release featuring a new protagonist. Along with all the perks you get as a supporter.So check it out! :) Get full access to The Crime Cafe...2018-09-0220 min
The Crime CafeInterview with Thriller Author Jame DiBiasio – S. 4, Ep. 5Author Debbi Mack interviews thriller author Jame DiBiasio on the Crime Cafe podcast.
Please consider becoming a Patreon supporter so we can provide podcast transcripts. Thanks! :)
Supporters get access to free books and stories, including my first novel, Identity Crisis, Donna Fletcher Crow's novel, A Very Private Grave, my short story "Jasmine", and advance looks at the third Sam McRae novel and my next release featuring a new protagonist. Along with all the perks you get as a supporter.
So check it out! :)2018-09-0220 min
The Crime CafeInterview with Thriller Author Jame DiBiasio – S. 4, Ep. 5Author Debbi Mack interviews thriller author Jame DiBiasio on the Crime Cafe podcast.
Please consider becoming a Patreon supporter so we can provide podcast transcripts. Thanks! :)
Supporters get access to free books and stories, including my first novel, Identity Crisis, Donna Fletcher Crow's novel, A Very Private Grave, my short story "Jasmine", and advance looks at the third Sam McRae novel and my next release featuring a new protagonist. Along with all the perks you get as a supporter.
So check it out! :)2018-09-0220 min
Creative Confidential with Bryan TukEpisode 50: Jame DiBiasio, AuthorJame DiBiasio is an author, a journalist, and an entrepreneur, who grew up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania but moved to Hong Kong in 1997 and has been in Asia since. Indy presses have published his two thrillers, GAIJIN COWGIRL and BLOODY PARADISE, as well as THE STORY OF ANGKOR, a history and guide to the famous temple monuments in Cambodia. He combines literature with a career in financial journalism. In 2000, he founded a magazine called AsianInvestor, which covers the asset-management industry, and came to oversee a small family of trade-industry publications. In 2017 he co-founded and launched an online-only news business called...2018-03-0842 min
Creative Confidential with Bryan TukEpisode 50: Jame DiBiasio, AuthorJame DiBiasio is an author, a journalist, and an entrepreneur, who grew up in Bucks County, Pennsylvania but moved to Hong Kong in 1997 and has been in Asia since. Indy presses have published his two thrillers, GAIJIN COWGIRL and BLOODY PARADISE, as well as THE STORY OF ANGKOR, a history and guide to the famous temple monuments in Cambodia. He combines literature with a career in financial journalism. In 2000, he founded a magazine called AsianInvestor, which covers the asset-management industry, and came to oversee a small family of trade-industry publications. In 2017 he co-founded and launched an online-only news business called...2018-03-0842 min
DigFin VoxChina Rapid Finance's IPO, Ep 5, S1China Rapid Finance, a P2P platform, raised $60m from its Nasdaq IPO, but the deal only got done with a hefty 40% discount to the company's target share price. Guest host David Zweifler asks DigFin's Jame DiBiasio whether this is a success, and what it means for the many other Chinese fintech companies with IPO ambitions.2017-05-0819 min
DigFin VoxCiti and the API economy, Ep 3, S1What open APIs mean for banks such as Citi, their fintech partners, and innovation in financial services. With guest host David Zweifler and DigFin's Jame DiBiasio.2017-04-2324 min
DigFin VoxHong Kong Ex's new board, Ep 1, S1Hong Kong Ex's new board, Ep 1, S1 by Jame DiBiasio2017-04-0717 min