Singapore is often considered fertile ground for startups and in particular fintechs to raise funds. In the first half of 2023, fintech companies in the country secured a total of US$934 million in funding across 84 deals, a far cry from the US$3.3 billion raised during the same period the prior year. Therefore it is not surprising that the top funded fintechs in Singapore in 2024 are also often the top funded fintechs in Southeast Asia.
In 2023, Singapore’s fintech sector amassed total funding of US$2.20 billion, inclusive of mergers and acquisitions (M&A), private equity (PE), and venture capital (VC) deals. This represents a substantial 68% decrease from the US$4.4 billion raised in 2022, data from KPMG show.
Year-on year (2011 – 2023) fintech VC, PE, and M and A activity in Singapore in USD (billion), Source- Source: KPMG, Feb 2024
Despite the slowdown, Singapore continued to lead the fintech sector in Asia-Pacific (APAC) last year, accounting for a substantial 21% of all fintech deals and reinforcing its reputation as a premier fintech hub in the region.
In the sector, several companies are standing out from the pack for their growth and traction. Today, we look at the top funded fintech companies in the Singapore, delving into their products and value propositions, and latest developments. For this list, we’ve used data from Tech in Asia, CB Insights, Dealroom, and company announcements.
Coda Payments – US$715 million
With a total of US$715 million venture capital (VC) funding raised, Coda Payments is the top funded fintech startup in Singapore. In its latest funding round in April 2022, Coda Payments raised US$690 million in a growth equity VC round, with participation from investors such as Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, VC firm Insight Partners, and New York-based global private equity firm Smash Capital.
Founded in 2011, Coda Payments specializes in secure content monetization solutions for gaming and digital content publishers. The company connects over 300 publishers to over 10 million paying customers through more than 300 payment channels.
Coda offers channel, platform and payment solutions including Custom Commerce, a 100% customizable web store; Codapay, which offers direct API payments integration on publishers’ websites; and Codashop, the preferred destination for in-game content purchases for over 11 million gamers worldwide.
Notable partners of Coda Payments include leading publishers such as Activision Blizzard, Electronic Arts, Riot Games, and Zynga.
Coda Payments operates in over 60 markets, including Southeast Asia, China, Latin America and the US. The company was recently named by the Straits Times as one of the 100 fastest-growing companies in Singapore, with a reported revenue of S$319 million in 2022 and a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42% between 2019 and 2022. It has also been named one of the fastest-growing companies in APAC by the Financial Times, a Technology Pioneer by the World Economic Forum and the Best Payment Solutions Provider for the Gaming Industry (Global) by Global Brand Magazine.
Advance Intelligence Group – US$700 million
Advance Intelligence Group, an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven technology company, has secured more than US$700 million in VC funding, the company claims, making it the second most well-funded fintech startup in Singapore. The company’s latest round, secured in May 2023, was a US$80 million growth equity VC round from an investor consortium led by existing investors Warburg Pincus and Northstar Group.
Headquartered in Singapore and operating across Asia, Advance Intelligence Group is one of the largest independent financial services-focused technology startups in Asia. Founded in 2016, the group has built an ecosystem of AI-powered, credit-enabled products and services, including buy now, pay later (BNPL) platform Atome, Indonesia’s top digital lending platform Kredit Pintar, enterprise digital identity and compliance and risk management solutions provider Advance.ai, and omnichannel e-commerce merchant services platform Ginee.
Advance Intelligence Group claims it serves over 500 enterprise clients, 235,000 merchants and 40 million individual consumers. Since inception, the company has disbursed over US$4 billion in loans. In the consumer space, its BNPL platform Atome continues to consolidate its regional leadership.
In 2023, Atome reported a gross merchandise volume of nearly US$1.5 billion, a 40% increase from the preceding year. The company says it reached profitability last year, as revenue surged 130%.
ANEXT Bank – US$502.61 million
ANEXT Bank, a digital wholesale bank, has raised US$502.61 million in funding, making it the third most well-funded in its category, according to DealStreetAsia. The sum comprises a US$188 million and a US$148 million capital boost from its parent company in March 2023 and March 2024, respectively.
Incorporated in Singapore and regulated by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), ANEXT Bank offers innovative digital financial services aimed at empowering local and regional micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). The bank supports these enterprises in future-proofing their businesses through digital adoption, sustainable practices, and global expansion. ANEXT Bank is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ant International.
A wholly-owned subsidiary of Ant International, ANEXT Bank offers several products and services including the ANEXT Business Account, ANEXT Business Loan, ANEXT Fixed Deposit, ANEXT Programme for Industry Specialists, as well as the SME Friends of ANEXT, an initiative for the bank to deepen engagement with the SME community to shape the digital bank of tomorrow together.
ANEXT Bank reported this month notable growth, with its total customer base growing more than two-fold over the past year. The bank facilitated a six-fold year-on-year (YoY) increase in cross-border transactions for its expanding customer base. The most significant growth in cross-border transactions was among MSMEs in the wholesale and retail trade, professional services, and information, communication, and technology sectors, the company said.
Amber Group – US$500 million
Amber Group, a digital asset company, has raised more than US$500 million in VC funding to date, data from CB Insights and Dealroom show, making it the fourth most well-funded fintech company in Singapore. Its latest round was a $300 million Series C round led by Fenbushi Capital US in December 2022.
Founded in 2017, Amber Group is a global digital asset leader providing crypto financial services to both institutional and high-net-worth investors globally. The company has built full-stack solutions that bridge traditional finance and digital assets, offering end-to-end services including wealth management, asset management, market making, advisory, investing and infrastructure.
Amber Group claims a cumulative trading volume of more than $1 trillion, more than 2,000 institutional clients, and over US$5 billion in assets under management (AUM). The firm boasts a team of over 400 professionals, including traders, technologists, and engineers, operating globally 24/7. It is backed by prominent investors, including Sequoia, Paradigm, Tiger Global, Dragonfly, Pantera, Coinbase Ventures, and Blockchain.com.
Recently, Amber Group launched a venture fund called the Amber Eco Fund and invested in over 50 startups across core Web3 sectors like infrastructure, gaming, decentralized finance and social networking. Notable investments include Ether.fi, 0xScope, Parallel, PADO Labs, and Starkware.
Kredivo Group – US$390 million
Digital credit startup Kredivo Group has secured about US$390 million in equity, data from Dealroom and news outlets Finextra and Techcrunch, show, making it the fifth most well-funded fintech startup in Singapore. Kredivo Group’s latest round was a US$270 million Series D led by Japanese bank Mizuho Bank, a subsidiary of Mizuho Financial Group, which was secured in March 2023.
Formerly known as FinAccel, Kredivo Group is a leading provider of digital financial services in Southeast Asia, operating brands such as Kredivo, Kredifazz, and Krom. Kredivo, the group’s flagship product, offers customers instant credit financing for both online and offline purchases, as well as personal loans based on real-time decisioning; KrediFazz is a marketplace connecting borrowers and lenders for personal loans with flexible interest rates, amounts, and repayment options; and Krom is a licensed Indonesian digital bank.
Kredivo Group is backed by leading financial and strategic investors including Square Peg Capital, Jungle Ventures, Naver Corp, Mirae Asset and Victory Park Capital, among others.
Nium – US$314.1 million
With a total of US$314.1 million in VC funding raised, Nium is the sixth most well-funded fintech startup in Singapore. The company’s last round was a US$50 million Series E funding round secured in June 2024. The round cut Nium’s valuation by 30% to US$1.4 billion.
Formerly known as Instarem, Nium is a leader in real-time global payments. The company caters to clients across various industries, including financial institutions, payroll, spend management, and travel, assisting them in targeting new markets with instant bank payouts and expanding into emerging markets. The company collaborates with leading global brands and platforms such as Rippling, Payoneer, Amadeus, Aspire, Mastercard, and eDreams.
Nium’s payout network supports 100 currencies across 190+ countries, with real-time capabilities in 100 of them, and enables the instant collection, conversion, and disbursement of funds globally to accounts, wallets, and cards, with local collection options available in 35 markets. Nium’s card issuance business is available in 34 countries.
Nium experienced strong revenue growth of 50%+ in 2023 compared to 2022, with recent client wins including Australian expense management leader, Weel, and one of the United Arab Emirates’ leading banks, Emirates NBD.
The company said it would use the proceeds from its Series E to further accelerate its growth plans in the business-to-business (B2B) payments market, including fueling global network expansion, accelerating product innovation, hiring top talent, and pursuing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity. It’s eyeing a public listing in the next 18 months, targeting a flotation in the third or fourth quarter of 2025.
Bolttech – US$246 million
Bolttech, an insurtech startup, has raised a total of US$493 million in VC funding, data from Dealroom, the Business Times, and the company itself, show. The total makes Bolttech the seventh most well-funded fintech startup in Singapore.
Bolttech’s last round was a US$246 million Series B funding round comprising three tranches secured in October 2022, May 2023 and September 2023. The company claimed at the time that the sum represented the largest ever Series B round for an insurtech in the country.
Founded in 2020, Bolttech is building the world’s leading technology-enabled ecosystem for protection and insurance. The ecosystem connects consumers to tailored and affordable insurance products via partner platforms in more than 35 markets across North America, Asia, Europe and Africa.
Bolttech serves a wide range of customers, including more than two million emerging consumers, especially with its device protection offerings.
In March 2024, Bolttech solidified its Japan presence, announcing a partnership in Japan with leading refurbished device marketplace, Back Market. The partnership, which marks one of Bolttech’s first commercial launches in the country, will deliver embedded device protection to Back Market’s customers through a seamless online experience.
The same month, Bolttech expanded into the Middle East with the launch of its partnership with stc Group, a leading telecommunications company, to provide its customers with innovative, embedded device protection offerings. The two companies will also explore expanding their partnership to include Internet-of-Things (IoT)-enabled solutions beyond mobile devices, extending to home appliances, health electronics, and cyber assets.
M-Daq – US$246 million
Cross-border payments and foreign exchange (FX) company M-Daq has raised US$246 million in funding so far, according to Dealroom data, making it the eighth most well-funded fintech startup in Singapore. M-Daq’s latest round was a S$200 million (US$147 million) Series D closed in August 2021.
Founded in 2010, M-Daq is global FX solution specialist to cross-border commerce. The company serves global e-commerce marketplaces, securities exchanges, fintech companies, and corporates across 45 markets, empowering customers on e-commerce platforms such as AliExpress, Tmall, and JD.com to shop in their home currency while allowing merchants to receive payments in their preferred currency.
M-Daq claims it processes S$14 billion worth of cross-border transactions annually and turned net profitable in 2018 for its flagship product, the Aladdin+ FX solution.
M-Daq, which has been actively pursuing a global growth plan, acquired in 2022 rival Wallex, a B2B cross-border payments provider from Singapore. That year, the company also expanded to Japan.
M-Daq achieved net profitability in 2018. The company boasts of an elite group of strategic and financial investors, including Affinity, Ant Group, EDBI, NTT Communications, Samsung, and Kiwoom Shinhan. It has offices across Singapore, Indonesia, China, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and the UK.
MariBank – US$229 million
MariBank, Sea Group’s Singapore-based digital banking subsidiary, has raised US$229 million in funding, according to Tech in Asia, making it the ninth most well-funded fintech company in Singapore. MariBank secured its last round of funding in December 11, 2023, receiving S$75 million (about US$56 million) more in capital infusion from Sea Group, according to DealStreetAsia.
Licensed by MAS, MariBank offers a comprehensive mobile banking application that facilitates both personal and business banking. For registered business owners, MariBank provides the Mari Business Account and Mari Business Loan, offering attractive interest rates and financing with zero banking fees.
In 2023, MariBank achieved its first full year of profitability, recording a net income of US$163 million and revenue of US$13 billion, a 5% increase from 2022. MariBank’s adjusted EBITDA was US$550.1 million in 2023, more than double the US$228.6 million recorded in 2022, while AUM with the Mari Invest investment account reached S$200 million (US$149 million).
GXS Bank – US$265 million
Singapore digital bank GXS Bank has raised about S$358 million (US$265 million) in funding so far, according to The Business Times of Singapore, comprising a S$145.1 million capital injection by Grab on January 11, 2024, as well as capital injections of S$75.8 million in April 2023 and S$137 million in July 2023, respectively. The sum makes GXS Bank the tenth most well-funded fintech company in Singapore.
Launched in 2022, GXS Bank is a licensed digital bank dedicated to enhancing banking services for everyday consumers and SMEs in Singapore, with a particular focus on underserved individuals and enterprises. The bank aims to promote financial inclusion and drive a financial revolution through the secure and ethical use of technology and data.
GXS Bank, which is backed by consortium that includes Grab, Southeast Asia’s leading super app, and Singtel, Asia’s leading communications technology group, currently offers a savings account, a debit card, and a personal loan. The digital bank is now planning to introduce an investment product.
GXS Bank has disbursed over 100,000 loans since the launch of its FlexiLoan in 2023. The bank aims to double this volume within the next six months. FlexiLoan caters to customers with little or no credit history, with average loan amounts ranging from S$2,700 to S$3,000.
GXS Bank backers, Grab and Singtel, are planning for a further capital injection of S$229.5 million (US$170 million) in the third quarter of 2024.
Featured image credit: edited from freepik
