March 28, 2024

Web and Technology News

China wraps up fintech crackdown with big fines on Tencent, Alibaba

The regulatory crackdown that has shaken up China’s fintech industry since late 2020 appears to be coming to a close with the imposition of hefty fines on the country’s two digital payments giants. Tencent, along with its payments subsidiary Tenpay, has been fined approximately 2.99 billion yuan ($410 million) by the People’s Bank of China […]

China wraps up fintech crackdown with big fines on Tencent, Alibaba by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch

Alibaba splits into six in biggest overhaul in 24 years

Alibaba never fails to show it’s a fan of restructuring to stay nimble in an ever-changing environment. The e-commerce behemoth said Tuesday that it will split into six business groups, which will each be managed by their respective CEOs and follow a holding company structure. Each CEO will report to a board of directors and […]

Alibaba splits into six in biggest overhaul in 24 years by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch

Aigens scales digital menus in Asia with $14M round led by Ant

Aigens, a Hong Kong-based startup that provides online ordering and marketing tools for the food and beverage industry, picked up a fresh $14 million Series A funding round led by Ant Group, the fintech behemoth affiliated with Alibaba, the company announced Monday. The capital infusion from Ant came at a time when the Chinese fintech […]

Aigens scales digital menus in Asia with $14M round led by Ant by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch

Ant’s global play is to be a payments aggregator and it now reaches 1B users

After trying for years to replicate the success of its QR code-enabled payments solution overseas, Ant Group seems to have finally found a path to scaling. Instead of going after end users, the Alibaba-affiliated fintech giant has been quietly forming partnerships with local payments providers in Asia. It’s built something akin to the Mastercard or […]

Ant’s global play is to be a payments aggregator and it now reaches 1B users by Rita Liao originally published on TechCrunch

China’s tech giants are having FOMO on NFTs

In mid-April, a group of industry associations in China issued a warning against the potential financial risks of non-fungible tokens, digital assets that represent real-world objects or intangible goods like a song. NFTs must not be traded with cryptocurrencies, said the country’s banking, internet finance, and securities associations, and they must not be used to […]

China’s tech giants are having FOMO on NFTs

In mid-April, a group of industry associations in China issued a warning against the potential financial risks of non-fungible tokens, digital assets that represent real-world objects or intangible goods like a song. NFTs must not be traded with cryptocurrencies, said the country’s banking, internet finance, and securities associations, and they must not be used to […]

Ant Group buys Singapore’s 2C2P to further global payments ambitions

Quietly, Alibaba’s fintech affiliate Ant Group has been building a global cross-border payments network by partnering with or investing in third-party e-wallets, banks, remittance services and other ecosystem players. The latest added to Ant’s alliance is 2C2P, a Singapore-based company that helps enterprises in Southeast Asia move money across borders. According to an announcement released […]

Wrapped in red tape, China’s startups give up their mainland dreams

Like many ambitious Chinese who graduated college abroad during the 2010s and aspired to be the next Jack Ma or Pony Ma, Lucas returned to his motherland to build his own internet startup. Two years into running the business, however, his enthusiasm has waned. The regulatory risks and compliance costs affecting his company have become […]

Sequoia-backed SwooshTransfer raises millions of dollars to automate cross-border payments

China’s export-oriented e-commerce has been flourishing over the last few years as the world demands its electronics, fast fashion, sporting gear and other everyday goods. While the country’s digital exporters revel in the boom, they also face challenges. One of their biggest pain points has been payments collection, which normally involves high costs, delays and […]