SISS Data Services Appoints Steve Kemp to lead Strategic Partnerships
Weekly APAC news up to Wednesday, 17th of September 2025.
Hey FinTech Community!
Profitability & expansion (both wider and deeper into the stack) are emerging as defining themes across APAC fintech.
In India, Groww has updated its DRHP targeting an $8B valuation (reports say this could be closer to $9B, due to its FY25 revenues of ~$450M - an increase of 31% year on year). Pine Labs is gearing for a $6B IPO after years of dominating merchant payments, and PhonePe is lining up an IPO at $7-8B in 2026 (they raised last at $12B in FY22). It is key to note that all these fintechs are either profitable, or close to it - PhonePe was profitable in FY24, excluding ESOPs cost. But the main point: as these companies prepare to list on public markets, the value isn't in just GTV or revenues, but the bottom lines. And driving revenues & profitability in an era of diminishing margins can't happen if you're a one-trick pony.
This trend is something I've been seeing not just in India, but mirrored across the region.
We're seeing fintechs go both deep and wide: Deeper into the payments & fintech stack, through infrastructure like card issuance, authentication, and RTP switches, while also expanding horizontally through licenses, new products, and partnerships with banks and even competitors.
Example: Payment aggregators in India are building their own UPI switches, but also getting into the consumer app and digital wallet play. UPI Apps are going towards becoming "everything" for the end customer, which includes personal loans, personal finance management, and stock broking (PhonePe with Sharemarket, Cred with Cred Money, and so on). In the Philippines, we see LemFi & GCash (a neobank & a digital wallet) teaming up to provide instant remittances. And with the margins in payments diminishing, the cross-border play & lending are two big levers every fintech is going towards. Example: Stripe launched Stripe Capital in Australia for flexible business financing, while in India, Razorpay & Pine Labs have international presence and ambitions.
Success in APAC fintech will be measured by the ability to diversify, capture adjacencies, and demonstrate resilience in the public markets. Partnerships, regulatory alignment, and smart M&A are key levers to scale faster and prove sustainability. All roads lead to becoming a full-stack fintech: both vertically and horizontally - whether this will be build, buy, or partner is something that will continue to evolve.
👀 NEWS HIGHLIGHT
TOKYO & SEOUL, South Korea Starting from late September 2025, Japan's leading cashless payment service PayPay will be accepted at over 2 million merchants across South Korea through Alipay+, a global wallet gateway service operated by Ant International. This will allow its 70 million registered users to make seamless payments during their visit, wherever the Alipay+ logo is displayed.
This marks a new chapter in PayPay’s overseas expansion. From K-beauty stores and convenience chains to local eateries and cultural hotspots, from modern shopping malls to traditional markets, users who complete identity verification (eKYC) on PayPay app in Japan will pay with greater ease and benefit from diverse promotions supported by PayPay, Alipay+ and merchants in the coming months.
📰 ARTICLE OF THE WEEK
NOW, ON TO THE SUMMARY OF LAST WEEK'S NEWS
🧋 REGIONAL HIGHLIGHTS
⭐️ SISS Data Services appoints Steve Kemp to lead strategic partnerships.
⭐️ Westpac taps Mastercard and Oracle's new embedded virtual card payment capabilities.
⭐️ K bank proves stablecoin remittance technology between S. Korea and Japan.
⭐️ Pelocal raises $5 million from Unleash Capital Partners, Unicorn India Ventures, and angels.
AUSTRALIA 🇦🇺
PayPal launches Fastlane to boost guest checkout in Australia. The service is designed to accelerate the checkout process, particularly for guests who do not wish to create accounts at individual retailers. By recognising shoppers using their email addresses and then verifying them with a one-time code, Fastlane enables users to access their saved payment and shipping details.
Stripe to launch Capital in Australia as it passes 1 million users across Australia and New Zealand. Stripe Capital will provide eligible small and medium-sized businesses access to fast, flexible business financing through the Stripe platform, helping them invest in growth and manage cash flow.
CHINA 🇨🇳
Ant International and AlipayHK launch digital wallet partnership. The initiative aims to develop risk management technologies, share best practices, and promote awareness campaigns targeting fraud and account takeovers. Read more
INDIA 🇮🇳
FinTech startup GrowXCD to raise Rs 200 Cr in Series B, led by Swiss-based Blue Earth Capital, with the participation from Prosus and existing investors including Lok Capital and UC Impower. Continue reading
Microsoft CEO-backed Groww to make a public filing for India IPO. The firm is seeking to raise between $650 million and $800 million at a valuation of up to $8 billion. If the valuation holds, Groww would become India’s largest brokerage by market value.
PHILIPPINES 🇵🇭
LemFi & GCash team up to help 94 million Filipinos receive Instant remittances. With this partnership and the now-concluded integration, Filipinos in North America and Europe (including the United Kingdom) can send money directly to their GCash wallets right within the LemFi app.
JAPAN 🇯🇵
GoPay expands QRIS payments to Japan and eyes China next. Users can now make payments at QRIS-enabled merchants, following Bank Indonesia´s move to expand its cross-border QR code payment system to the country in August 2025. This allows Indonesian travelers to pay at Japanese merchants by scanning JPQR codes using the GoPay app.
MOVERS & SHAKERS
ANZ Risk Chief Kevin Corbally Steps Down amid Revamp and stays with the bank. Corbally will become managing director of Capital Management Institutional and report to the firm’s institutional head, Mark Whelan, according to a statement. Read more
FinTech platform BillCut appoints Anupam Bhat as CFO. “The opportunity to leverage technology and financial expertise to make a tangible difference in how millions of Indians manage and reduce their debt is truly inspiring. I look forward to helping BillCut scale responsibly with accessible and affordable solutions,” Bhat said in a prepared statement.