Fintech 2026

SINGAPORE Law and Practice Contributed by: Kenneth Pereire and Lin YingXin, KGP Legal LLC

1. Fintech Market 1.1 Evolution of the Fintech Market Past 12 Months

• Operational resilience – the interconnectedness of fintech platforms increases systemic risks, neces - sitating robust contingency plans and scalable AI solutions. • Consumer protection in digital asset services – increased regulatory focus on safeguarding cus - tomer assets, segregation and disclosure obliga - tions for digital payment token service providers. 2. Fintech Business Models and Regulation in General 2.1 Predominant Business Models Singapore’s fintech ecosystem in 2025 encompasses diverse business models catering to different seg - ments of the financial industry. Both new entrants and legacy players continue to innovate, leveraging advanced technology and regulatory support. The predominant verticals include the following. Digital Payments and Remittances Digital payment platforms dominate Singapore’s fin - tech landscape, with both established players like PayNow and GrabPay and newer entrants offering seamless, real-time payment solutions. Cross-border payment systems, such as those facilitated by Project Nexus, address the growing need for efficient regional remittances, targeting SMEs and consumers across ASEAN. Digital Lending and Alternative Financing Platforms like Funding Societies and Validus focus on providing SMEs with alternative financing options, including peer-to-peer lending and invoice financ - ing. Embedded finance solutions offered by Grab and Shopee integrate credit and microloan services Wealth management platforms, including StashAway and Endowus, lead in democratising access to invest - ment opportunities. These platforms offer personal - ised financial planning and portfolio management using AI-driven tools, making them appealing to retail and mass-affluent investors. directly into their ecosystems. WealthTech and Robo-Advisers

Over the past 12 months, Singapore’s fintech sec - tor has seen continued progress in real-time payment networks, artificial intelligence-driven solutions and tokenised assets. Cross-border payment systems expanded through Project Nexus, with the Phase 3 blueprint completed by July 2024 and live imple - mentation expected to take place between 2025 and 2026, connecting Singapore with Thailand, Malaysia, the Philippines and India. Nexus Global Payments was incorporated in Singapore in 2025, establishing the operational framework for the world’s first multilateral instant payment system. Generative artificial intelligence has seen increasing deployment by financial institutions and fintech firms, including OCBC Bank and StashAway, to enhance customer service, risk management and investment decision-making. Tokenisation initiatives have also continued to gain traction, with platforms such as Marketnode facilitating the issuance and trading of digital bonds. At the same time, embedded finance solutions have expanded, with platforms such as Grab offering microloans and insurance products through GrabPay. Green fintech initiatives, supported by plat - forms such as GreenArc Capital and the MAS Finance for Net Zero Action Plan, continues to focus on sus - tainability and ESG-related compliance. Key Issues Impacting the Fintech Market in the Next 12 Months • Cybersecurity risks – increased cross-border transactions and AI-driven platforms are raising the threat of fraud and scams, requiring advanced security measures. • Regulatory challenges – rapid growth in digital cur - rencies, AI and CBDCs necessitates clearer regula - tions, especially for AML compliance, data privacy and global jurisdictional co-ordination. • Talent and skills gap – high demand for expertise in AI, blockchain and cybersecurity is outpacing sup - ply, threatening innovation. • ESG compliance – standardising ESG metrics and meeting cross-border compliance remain barriers to adopting green fintech solutions.

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