Asia

LankaPay, Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority, and Alipay+ have entered into a strategic collaboration aimed at boosting Sri Lanka’s tourism appeal and attracting international visitors, particularly from Asia and the wider Asia-Pacific region.

Southeast Asia saw a total of 14 initial public offerings (IPOs) that raised $1.8 billion in the first quarter of 2026, a 48 percent decline in volume but 174 percent increase in proceeds compared with 27 IPOs raising $700 million in the first quarter of 2025, EY said Monday.

South Korea will launch pilot projects testing artificial intelligence (AI)-based smart city technologies across five Southeast Asian countries, as part of efforts to address urban challenges while supporting the overseas expansion of domestic firms, Korean media reported on Monday.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced plans to mobilize up to $6 billion by 2030 and provide institutional support to capital market regulators in Southeast Asia to accelerate the development of the region’s capital markets and strengthen its long-term financial resilience against external shocks.

Malaysia-based venture capital firm OSK Ventures International Berhad (OSKVI) has successfully exited its investment in Alternatives.pe through its fund OSK Ventures ET Fund II Ltd.P. (OSKVETF2), following the acquisition of Alternatives.pe by Japan-listed business intelligence firm Uzabase, Inc.

Registration for the tour is strictly limited to ensure high-quality interactions. Interested parties are encouraged to apply early to secure their place in this exclusive delegation. The final deadline for participants to join the upcoming tour is May 1, 2026.

Carefully selected from across the globe, these industry pioneers and leaders will represent BEYOND Expo in promoting the event to outstanding innovative companies, entrepreneurs, and tech talents worldwide, while connecting high-quality resources.

Generative artificial intelligence (AI) could significantly reshape economies and labor markets across Asia and the Pacific, but widening disparities in readiness mean advanced economies are likely to capture most early gains, according to a report by the Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Friday.

The global build-out of artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure will require up to $1.6 trillion over the next five years, with access to power, not capital, now the primary constraint on growth, according to Knight Frank.

A new study by the UK-based Juniper Research projects that spending on agentic commerce will reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, rising from early pilot deployments expected in 2025 and 2026.