OneConnect Financial Technology Co. Ltd. (OneConnect), a member of China’s insurance giant and Fortune Top 29 Company Ping An Group, has been steadily ramping up their presence in the Asia Pacific region since the launch of its regional office in Singapore last year. Since establishing its regional headquarters in Singapore last November, OneConnect has been aggressively growing its regional footprint, with partnerships established in Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines and Japan. These maiden deals will deepen and widen OneConnect’s foray into the countries and the rest of Asia.

Most recently, the company announced a strategic partnership with SBI Group to enter the Japan market. The joint venture in Japan with SBI Group marked an important move in OneConnect’s strategic alliance in Asia. SBI OneConnect Japan will fully leverage SBI Neo Financial Services’ and other SBI companies’ network and introduce OneConnect’s fintech services to the financial institutions and businesses across Japan.

Across Southeast Asia, OneConnect has also been successful in partnering banks and non-bank financial institutions, as well as associations in the region. In addition to setting up its office in Indonesia, the team has established two partnerships with PT Bank Sinarmas Tbk, a leading bank in Indonesia, and with PT. Kredit Biro Indonesia Jaya, the country’s first private credit bureau to provide banks and micro-finance organizations with better lending decisions.

In Thailand, OneConnect counts three of the top 10 banks as its customers while in the Philippines, it has partnered with UBX, the fintech subsidiary of digital banking leader Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank) to co-create its first blockchain-enabled digital platform and suite of solutions for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).

OneConnect is also partnering with one of the top banks in Malaysia to promote financial inclusion for SMEs. In Vietnam, it is collaborating with a leading finance company to provide easy access of loans to meet the financing needs of the local people.

These recent developments underscore OneConnect’s commitment in accelerating digital transformation and exponential growth by using advanced technologies that enable financial institutions to better serve the unbanked and underserved communities in Asia.

“In China, we took less than four short years to work with more than 3,300 financial institutions, including 590 banks, over 2,600 non-bank financial institutions, and over 70 insurance customers on their digital transformation through the provision of our technology solutions. With many of the banks in Asia looking to gain digital capabilities to narrow the gap between the unbanked and the underbanked with the rest of the population, we are confident in the massive potential for OneConnect to grow and contribute to the finance industry in Asia. The Singapore-based regional team was set up in late 2018 to focus on business outside of China, and in six months we have made huge strides. We continue to look forward to strengthening our presence as quickly as we did in China,” said Ms. Tan Bin Ru, CEO (Southeast Asia), OneConnect Financial Technology.

“We are honored to have OneConnect – known for its expertise in SME financial services platforms and AI enabled credit scoring – as our partner in bringing solutions to the needs of our MSMEs,” said UBX President and CEO Mr. John Januszczak. “Based on recent statistics from our central bank, only about 6% of total loans in the banking system are invested in MSMEs. Our goal is to give these MSMEs the chance to grow their business and succeed.”

In terms of its innovation prowess, OneConnect currently has 161 patent applications in the blockchain technology area, six of which have been approved. The company’s blockchain technology has been granted the IDC Global Blockchain Award, and The Asian Banker’s 2019 Best Blockchain or Distributed Ledger Technology Award.

SOURCE OneConnect