APAC digital wallets payments remain dominant globally, with digital wallets accounting for 77% of online spend worth USD2.7tr and 63% of in-person transactions worth USD6.3tr in 2025, according to a report by Global Payments. Adoption is broad-based, led by India and South Korea, while Southeast Asia is seeing rapid growth in account-to-account payments supported by national systems such as PromptPay and PayNow. Thailand has emerged as a leading A2A market, while Singapore r

Asia family offices turned more cautious in 2025, with expected average portfolio returns falling to 6% from the 10% respondents had anticipated in 2024, as market volatility and concerns over US tariffs and fiscal policy clouded the outlook, according to Campden Wealth and BNP Paribas Wealth Management. Cash was seen as the most rewarding asset class over the next 12 months, while private markets still made up 24% of average portfolios, second only to public equities at 27%.

Hong Kong family office tax incentives are being promoted to Australian investors as the city pitches itself as a base for family offices through its gateway role to mainland China and Asia-Pacific, deep capital markets and favourable tax treatment. Officials said Hong Kong manages more than USD4.5tr in assets as the world’s second-largest cross-border wealth hub, while Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing was the top venue globally for IPO fundraising in 2025. They also highligh

Hong Kong paperless securities regime is targeted for launch on Nov. 16, 2026, according to the Securities and Futures Commission, which said newly listed securities will have to be issued in paperless form from listing while existing listed securities will be brought into the system gradually over five years. The SFC said investors holding paper certificates could decide when to convert them into electronic form and that a commencement notice would be tabled before the Legis

Thailand private investment stabilises despite concerns that Middle East conflict and baht volatility could hurt the economy, the Fiscal Policy Office said. Capital goods imports, a proxy for private investment in machinery and equipment, jumped 43.7% from a year earlier in February, while exports rose 9.9% to USD29.4bn, extending a 20-month expansion. Excluding oil, gold-related products and military supplies, exports grew 11%, led by electronics, electrical appliances and v

Asian family offices alternatives exposure is deepening, especially in private equity and hedge funds, although some investors in the region have at times become overexposed because of their flexibility in deploying capital, Morgan Stanley Private Wealth Management Asia’s Christina Au-Yeung said. She said Asian families were still in the early stages of building more institutionalised portfolio frameworks for alternatives compared with peers in North America and Europe. Au-Ye

Hong Kong Singapore financial hubs cooperation can help both cities grow and remain resilient, Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said after a three-day visit during which he met Chief Executive John Lee and other public- and private-sector leaders. In a blog post, Wong said Hong Kong felt familiar yet renewed, while Lee said both cities shared a commitment to free trade and multilateralism. The visit came as Singapore moved to strengthen its bullion ecosystem, with the M

Bursa Malaysia HKEX joint index development has advanced as the two exchanges launched a joint large-cap benchmark and signed an agreement to deepen capital market ties. The new HKEX Bursa Malaysia Large Cap Index tracks 60 stocks, split equally between the two markets, and is intended to support products such as exchange-traded funds. The exchanges also agreed to cooperate on dual listings, index development, ETF access, syariah-compliant securities and carbon market opportu

Singapore family offices AI adoption is rising sharply in operations, though that has yet to translate into active investment in the sector, according to an Ocorian report. The study found 96% of 25 respondents, including family members and senior executives at Singapore-based family offices, were using AI to improve operations and data insights, yet none were currently seeking AI-related investment opportunities. Still, 64% said they expected to increase investments in AI an

Asia legacy planning remains weak, with nearly six in 10 high-net-worth individuals in the region lacking a formal plan, according to an HSBC Life report that highlighted risks to intergenerational wealth transfer. Only 24% of respondents in Taiwan had a legacy plan, followed by 26% in Hong Kong and 36% in mainland China, while Thailand led the surveyed markets at 57%. The report said economic and financial market volatility, cited by 45% of respondents, was a stronger trigge

Hong Kong financial centre ranking held steady at third globally and first in Asia-Pacific in the 39th Global Financial Centres Index, the Financial Services Development Council said, citing Z/Yen Group and the China Development Institute. Hong Kong’s overall score rose to 765, leaving it one point behind London and two points behind New York. The city also retained first place in the fintech index and ranked top globally in banking, insurance and finance. FSDC chairman Benja

China fund manager merger activity is set to deepen as Huaan Fund Management and smaller peer HFT Investment Management prepare to combine under rules that bar one company from controlling stakes in two mutual fund managers, according to a local media report. Both firms are controlled by Guotai Haitong Securities, and the final merger plan is expected later this month or in early April. The proposed China fund manager merger comes as regulators push wider consolidation across

Philippines private capital funding growth accelerated in 2025 as total capital raised rose 34% year on year to USD1.5bn, according to a Foxmont Capital Partners report. Debt financing jumped 144% to USD490m, while equity funding rose 10% to USD1.01bn. Although total deal volume fell, average deal size increased 64% to just over USD20m, indicating a shift towards larger transactions. Fintech remained the most active sector by deal count, while healthtech posted the biggest ri

Asia family office demand is accelerating as growing private wealth and rising intergenerational transfers push affluent families towards more structured approaches to succession and governance, Raffles Family Office said. Chief executive Kendrick Lee said the firm recognised the shift early and built a presence across Singapore and Hong Kong to capture cross-border investment opportunities and diversify regulatory exposure. He said family offices increasingly complement priv

Asia real estate private credit fund commitments have reached USD165m for Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management and Aravest Private Funds, marking the first in a planned pipeline of private credit products under SMBC Group’s private markets platform. The strategy launched in 2025 with USD120m and expanded after additional commitments, Sumitomo Mitsui DS said. The fund can invest across the property asset life cycle, including construction, bridge and stabilised stages. The laun

Vietnam international financial centre plans are prompting domestic lenders to expand into the country’s new hub as they seek to attract foreign capital and build cross-border financial services. Nam A Bank has won shareholder approval to establish a wholly owned subsidiary under the centre’s framework, while Vietcombank and VietinBank are also moving to set up entities there. The centre, launched in Ho Chi Minh City on Feb. 11, is expected to focus on sustainable finance, gr

Berkshire Tokio Marine stake plans will see Berkshire Hathaway buy a 2.49% holding in Japanese insurer Tokio Marine Holdings for about USD1.8bn as part of a strategic partnership in reinsurance and global investments. Tokio Marine will sell about 48.2 million treasury shares to National Indemnity, one of Berkshire’s reinsurance units, while Berkshire may lift its stake to 9.9% through market purchases without board approval. Tokio Marine said it would use up to JPY287.4bn of

Asia Pacific private equity exits rebound in 2025 as exit value rose 24% to USD150bn and net distributions turned positive, according to Bain & Company. Bain said IPO and open-market exits jumped more than 70% from 2024, while trade exits rose 60%, helping ease pressure on distributions despite ageing portfolios from 2020 to 2022. Exit values increased across most regional markets, though Southeast Asia fell to USD4bn from USD6bn. Fundraising dropped 37% to USD58bn, marking a

Dubai safe haven family offices are facing a meaningful stress test as prolonged conflict in the Gulf prompts some Asian family offices to reassess the emirate’s role as a neutral base for assets. Advisers said enquiries about shifting portfolios or setting up secondary offices in Singapore and Hong Kong had risen sharply as US-Israeli strikes on Iran stretched into a third week. Families were said to be prioritising contingency planning, liquidity and downside protection, wh

Taiwan investors active ETFs demand remains firm as a majority of respondents in a joint survey by Line Bank Taiwan and JPMorgan Asset Management’s Taiwan unit said they were optimistic on local equities despite volatility. About 58% said they were positive on Taiwanese stocks and planned to increase holdings, while 55% said they had added actively managed ETFs to their portfolios. Among investors with more than five years’ experience in local shares, nearly 69.7% planned to