On location

BNP Paribas, the European Union’s leading bank, and Ant International, a Singapore-based digital payment and financial technology firm, have formed a strategic partnership to enhance cross-border payment solutions for merchants and consumers in Europe.

Japanese venture capital fund Softbank Group Corp. has acquired United Kingdom chip start-up Graphcore for an undisclosed sum.

Since its founding in 2020, the watch company has garnered about $13.6 million from backers such as Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, Gobi Partners GBA, and K3 Venture

Lion Parcel, a logistics service provider in Indonesia, has partnered with Salesforce, the United States-based artificial intelligence (AI) customer relationship management firm, to optimize customer service through generative AI integration.

ZTrade, a Web 3 platform operated on MY E.G. Services Bhd (MYEG)'s blockchain platform Zetrix that facilitates the cross-border trading of goods with China, is expanding its scope of coverage to encompass the digital verification of certificates of origin (COOs) issued by the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC).

Vietnam Prosperity Joint-Stock Commercial Bank (VPBank) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC) have recently collaborated to provide $150 million supply chain financing for coffee-exporting companies in Vietnam.

Net Zero-X, a Singapore-based blockchain exchange for impact investors, launches on Tuesday to tackle the significant financing gap impeding the global transition to a net zero future.

Prenetics, a United States-listed health sciences company, has announced that former international footballer, entrepreneur and philanthropist David Beckham has become a strategic investor in the business.

The report also said it is the largest fundraising by a privately-owned VC firm in China in the past year, marking the ongoing influence commanded by its founder Neil Shen, often considered the country’s most powerful tech investor.

66 percent of travel companies are seeing their profit margins impacted by outdated or complicated payment systems, with nine in ten expected to prioritize modernizing their financial operations this year, a report said Tuesday.