Chinese fintech giant Ant Group, owners of Alibaba, has launched its Singapore digital wholesale bank, Anext.
The new lender will provide digital financial services to local and regional micro, small and medium enterprises, especially those engaging in cross-border operations for growth and global expansion.
Anext has also inked a two-year MoU with Proxtera, the MAS-backed business-to-business marketplace network designed to reduce friction in cross-border trade, especially for SMEs.
The pair will jointly create and establish an open framework for all participating financial institutions as they provide financing and risk mitigation support for SMEs and platforms in global trades. Anext Bank will also be Proxtera’s first participating digital wholesale bank in Singapore.
Toh Su Mei, CEO, Anext Ban, says: “We believe it’s time to offer the next generation of financial services that are accessible and effortless for growing businesses.
“Amid rapid acceleration in the digital economy, business models are changing and pivoting to become digital-first, if not adopting a hybrid model. Financial services have to evolve and be where SMEs are doing their businesses digitally.”
