Singapore is building a bridge between Korean fintech and ASEAN countries

From second left to right: Kim Gwang-soo, Chairman and CEO of the Korea Federation of Banks; Reuben Lim, CEO of the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA); and Boonseng Gan, community director at 80RR [YOON SO-YEON]

SINGAPORE – Korean technology companies can quickly expand their presence in the global market by launching in Singapore, a financial hub for Southeast Asian countries, according to Reuben Lim, head of the Singapore FinTech Association (SFA).

“The clear regulations in Singapore is what makes it special, as well as being the stepping stone to ASEAN countries, despite the small population here,” Lim told Korea JoongAng Daily during a tour of 80RR, a co-working space. for fintech start-ups in Singapore, Monday.

“The digital economy agreement [DEA], which is like the Free Trade Agreement on Digital Assets, signed between Korea and Singapore, allows for active digital exchange between the countries. Singapore has positioned itself as the regional headquarters for all business transactions in Southeast Asia.

Since January 2019, SFA has been working closely with the Banks Foundation for Young Entrepreneurs, also known as D.Camp, to help Singaporean start-ups launch in Korea and vice versa.

The 80RR Fintech Hub is part of the SFA’s efforts to nurture fintech ventures in Singapore. Co-founded by SFA, Hong Leong Holdings and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), 80RR aims to be an open co-working space for start-ups, rather than selecting a few companies for a limited number of offices.

Start-ups accelerated by D.Camp can also use the 80RR space.

“For smaller companies, it’s important to have a physical space for them to meet and network,” said Boonseng Gan, community director at 80RR.

“Unlike big companies like Korean Air, Samsung or SK, people don’t know the names of these companies and they have to make themselves known to the rest of the world. Having a physical space facilitates this so-called publicity.”

Singapore has grown rapidly as a fintech leader under the top-down system from the government, easier to regulate than larger countries.

For example, the PayNow service is a nationwide payment system that allows users to manage, transfer and pay directly from accounts of 10 banks and four non-bank institutions using a single app. The project started in 2017 and saw exponential growth during the pandemic. It is administered by the Associations of Banks Singapore (ABS).

But far from always tightening the belt, Singaporean authorities also guarantee a high degree of freedom under a sandbox regulatory program similar to that in Korea.

“Clear rules are essential for business growth,” Lim said. “Imagine that business is like a sports game, and every time athletes are involved in the sport, the rules are unclear or constantly changing. Clear and well-defined rules allow players to play within the boundaries and bring out their best performance.”

The coming years may be tough for startups as companies tighten their budgets and investments due to bleeding macroeconomic conditions, but startups will have to weather the storm to make it through.

“Both [Korea and Singapore] share similar parallel histories and are hungry for expansion, growth,” Lim said. “Korea and Singapore generally practice a laissez-faire market approach, which means, startup or not, your solution has to be wanted by the market to see success.”

BY YOON SO-YEON [[email protected]]