HSBC and Google Cloud released last Thursday its Digital Frontiers 2030 report, which finds that Southeast Asia’s digital economy could reach $1 trillion by 2030, with potential to double to $2 trillion as regional integration and real-time payments accelerate adoption.

Presented by HSBC and Google Cloud in partnership with Payments and Commerce Market Intelligence (PCMI), the study identifies how programmable money, embedded credit, and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven automation are redefining the region’s financial landscape.

The report identifies four key trends transforming how businesses, entrepreneurs, and consumers create and exchange value across the region.

Firstly, digital seller platforms will permeate all areas of the Southeast Asian economy.

It is noted that 75 million digital entrepreneurs already drive 58 percent of ASEAN’s digital economy, generating $175 billion in gross transaction volume in 2025, and is expected to reach $580 billion by 2030 as the marketplace model expands to new verticals and cross-border integration creates even more opportunities for these enterprising individuals.

Secondly, demand for embedded, personalized credit is rising among the region’s mass affluent.

77 percent of consumers in ASEAN now use embedded finance via wallets, Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) applications or in-app credit.

BNPL solutions are expected to represent 25 percent of online transactions by 2027, ahead of global averages.

Thirdly, speed and security are the top drivers of consumer payment choice.

Many (67 percent) of ASEAN consumers cite speed as their main concern when making payments, followed closely by security (57 percent).

Speed and security are shaping payment preferences across ASEAN, reflecting consumers’ growing expectation for instant and trusted transactions.

Regional cross-border payment volumes are projected to double by 2030, supported by the expansion of instant payment networks and stable coin adoption.

Fourthly, agentic commerce and programmable money on the horizon.

ASEAN consumers are ready for automated commerce and finance, in which AI agents independently manage payments, credit and purchasing on behalf of users.

Automated commerce and programmable money, powered by agentic AI and stable coins, will disrupt 70 percent of Asia Pacific businesses by 2026 as consumers demand automated financial management, always-on, self-executing transactions.

“Southeast Asia’s digital transformation is accelerating rapidly, with Singapore at the forefront of this shift,

“In the near future, AI agents and programmable finance will rewire digital commerce, and a quantum-enabled world will redefine how value moves across borders,” said Shayan Hazir, Chief Digital Officer, Asia (xHK) & MENAT, HSBC.

“Amid these shifts, we must continue to empower digital entrepreneurs across ASEAN and create new opportunities for inclusion and growth,

“The region’s $2 trillion digital opportunity will be defined by how well we collaborate to build trusted, interoperable systems,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mark Micallef, Managing Director, Southeast Asia, Google Cloud, said cloud regions have emerged as the foundation for Southeast Asia’s growing digital economy.

“Google Cloud is proud to be part of that foundation, with established cloud regions in Indonesia and Singapore, and upcoming ones in Malaysia and Thailand,” he added.

According to the statement, Singapore continues to play a pivotal role as the region’s innovation and financial hub, ranking first globally in the International Institute for Management Development (IMD) World Digital Competitiveness Index 2024 and attracting S$192 billion ($142 billion) in foreign direct investment in 2024.

The report also highlights how Singapore’s regulatory environment continues to enable innovation in digital finance.

The study also finds that half of ASEAN’s 693 million people are under 30 years old, and 61 percent of digital entrepreneurs are below 35, underscoring the region’s young, innovation-driven demographic.

With 415 million middle-class consumers by 2030, the demand for AI-personalized, embedded, and autonomous finance will only intensify.

As ASEAN economies integrate further through DEFA, the report concluded that digitalization will continue to rewrite the rules of business, driving new models of partnership between banks, fintechs, and platforms.

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