News
QR Ph now accepts Alipay+ partner wallets
Alipay+ just connected to QR Ph, giving 2.5 million Philippine merchants access to cross-border wallet payments through the QR codes they already use.
News
Philippines
The Ghost in the Ledger: The Philippines' Flood Money, One Year Later
A second look at the ₱556 billion question: what changed when the accountability we asked for actually arrived.
Ecosystem
The Trust Tax: How Indonesia's Startup Scandals Repriced an Entire Ecosystem
Indonesia’s startup boom didn’t just stall — it got repriced, as the eFishery and TaniHub scandals turned “growth at all costs” into a permanent trust tax on every Indonesian founder raising capital.
News
What Southeast Asian Founders Can Learn from Airwallex
Jack Zhang turned a coffee shop headache into a $1B fintech. Here's what SEA founders can learn from the playbook he wrote—and how to adapt it for our fragmented reality.
News
When Legacy Buys Culture: What Publicis' Hepmil Acquisition Really Means for Asia's Media Future
When a Euronext-listed holding company writes an undisclosed check for a meme factory, it's not buying jokes—it's buying the blueprint for how marketing works when platforms automate agencies out of existence.
Digest
Southeast Asia’s Power Moves – October 2025
Southeast Asia’s digital economy is undergoing a strategic transformation, with capital and regulatory power moves laying the foundation for the next decade. This month’s digest reveals how disciplined investment, infrastructure buildout, and policy clarity are reshaping the region’s future.
Southeast Asia
SEA's Funding Slow Burn—Is Early-Stage the Last Safe Haven?
SEA startups face crunch: Over 95% of deals are early-stage, but seed funding has halved and late-stage capital remains scarce. Singapore claims 92% of funding, while more founders now contend with shorter runways and tougher fundraising than before.
Digest
Oblique Digest: Southeast Asia’s Power Moves - September 2025
Southeast Asia’s startup map is shifting. The Philippines edges past Indonesia in funding, Sea proves profitability is possible, and AI still draws outsized bets. Here are the power moves and undercurrents shaping the region’s next growth cycle.
News
BSP Forces E-Wallet Decoupling From Online Gambling: The Philippines Draws a Hard Line Against Digital Gambling
BSP’s e-wallet gambling controls signal regulatory maturity in ASEAN fintech. By requiring separate gambling accounts & ₱300M capital minimums rather than blanket bans, Philippines creates template for balancing innovation with social harm prevention.
News
The Philippines' Flood Control Budget Crisis: A P556 Billion Question with Devastating Results
Despite allocating over ₱556 billion since 2022, the Philippines remains critically unprepared for floods. This investigation uncovers why one of the world’s highest flood control budgets still fails to protect millions.
News
The Rebuild Is On. And It’s Not Where You Think.
Thailand’s digital banks go live, Airwallex hits $6.2B, and Davao stuns with record startup growth. We break down the week’s biggest moves reshaping Southeast Asia’s tech ecosystem.
News
Capital, Compliance, Consolidation: The New SEA Tech Trifecta
Superapps raise war chests. Regulators move fast. And founders pivot to survive. Here’s what actually mattered from July 7–14 across SEA’s tech scene.