- Ant International announces momentum in serving global MSMEs
across its businesses – Alipay+, Antom, WorldFirst, ANEXT Bank and
newly-introduced bettr
- Ant International launches the second edition of SisBerdaya in
Indonesia with DANA, and shares milestones in its 10x1000 Tech for
Inclusion program
- In celebration of International MSME Day, Ant International
launches global “Embrace the Power of Small” campaign featuring the
stories of three entrepreneurs, across out-of-home billboards, TV
and social media
On 2024 International MSME Day, Ant International, a digital
payment and financial services leader, shares that it supports
almost 100 million Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises
(MSMEs) worldwide across its businesses and partner programs; and
reinforces its commitments towards MSME digitalization and
inclusion through the expansion of its services, new programs for
skills development with industry partners, and a new global
campaign.
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“MSMEs are the lifeblood of our economies, driving innovation,
employment, and inclusive development,” said Douglas Feagin,
President of Ant International. “Their resilience and
entrepreneurial spirit deserve to be celebrated and nurtured. At
Ant International, we firmly believe in the power of small and that
small businesses can make a big impact. Fintech innovations today
unlock new possibilities for small businesses to dream boldly and
compete globally. Together with our partners, we want to ensure
that every business and every person will have access to the
knowledge, network, and digital tools to help them achieve their
goals.”
Empowering growth for MSMEs through digitalization
Across its businesses, Ant International offers solutions that
enable MSMEs to digitalize, opening new growth opportunities.
Alipay+, the cross-border mobile payments and marketing
solutions operated by Ant International, announced an expansion of
its global acceptance. As of June 2024, Alipay+ is accepted by over
90 million merchants in over 66 markets, connecting businesses to
users of 30 international payment partners. With travel picking up
and tourism a key driver of many local economies, this enables many
small businesses to connect with global mobile-first consumers in a
simple, cost-efficient manner.
A key development in driving digitalization at scale is through
Alipay+’s integration with national QRs. Alipay+ is currently
integrated with the national QRs of Singapore, Malaysia and South
Korea, which counts MSMEs as majority of its merchants. In
Singapore, Alipay+ transactions at hawker stalls have increased
52% in H1 2024, compared to H2 2023. In Malaysia and South
Korea, Alipay+ transactions increased 44% and 54%
respectively via PayNet and ZeroPay, in Q2 vs Q1 2024. Alipay+ also
has partnerships with national QRs in Cambodia, Nepal and Sri
Lanka.
As a leading provider of digital payment solutions, Antom
supports merchants of all sizes, including MSMEs, across over 40
countries and regions. Through a single integration, Antom connects
them to more than 250 payment methods in over 150 markets. Its
D-store solution enables MSME merchants to digitalize their
operations and set up an online store in just 10 minutes with zero
upfront cost. Over 5000 outlets have already onboarded this
solution, with average monthly transactions growing by 27%
in Q2 vs Q1 2024.
In supporting MSMEs to do business globally, WorldFirst
empowers more than 1 million SMEs with international payments to
200+ markets in over 100 currencies. To enable more SMEs to do
cross-border trade, WorldFirst will expand to more markets in
Southeast Asia and Europe this year. ANEXT Bank, a digital
wholesale bank incorporated in Singapore, recently celebrated its
second anniversary, with two times year-on-year increase in
its customer base, of which 69% are micro businesses. To
further support regional MSMEs, ANEXT Bank has introduced its
second batch of SME Friends of ANEXT with forward-thinking small
and growing businesses to co-create the “digital bank of
tomorrow”.
Ant International has also recently unveiled bettr, a new
global digital lending service to provide micro lending to MSMEs
through embedded finance partnerships, further accelerating
financial inclusion.
Harnessing industry partnerships to drive MSME
development
Ant International believes in open industry collaboration to
jointly support knowledge and skills development for MSMEs.
In Indonesia, Ant International and DANA will launch the second
edition of SisBerdaya, an initiative that provides female
micro entrepreneurs training, mentoring, and educational programs
in business management and digital skills. Started in 2023, the
first edition drew more than 2700 applicants, with 180 participants
undergoing a one-month training, and grants awarded to 30
entrepreneurs.
In collaboration with the International Finance Corporation,
10x1000 Tech for Inclusion is an open learning platform to help
future digital leaders develop more skills to drive greater impact
within their communities. As of 2023, with the support of 40+
global strategic partners, more than 6,000 individual
talents from 100+ countries and regions completed the 10x1000
learning programs, of which 90% are from developing markets
and 60% work in MSMEs.
Earlier this year, Ant International launched Programme Sirius,
with the support of 13 Asia Pacific fintech leaders to empower
MSMEs in their transition towards sustainability, in line with the
United Nationals Sustainable Development Goals.
Global campaign to ‘Embrace the power of small’
In celebration of International MSME Day, Ant International
launches its “Embrace the power of small” campaign featuring three
business owners and their journeys of digitalization. The business
owners are:
Cholthicha Joyyangsuk (Numwan), Thailand – a micro
entrepreneur in Bangkok selling Thai desserts on her tuktuk. With
Alipay+, she can now easily accept mobile payments from tourists,
sharing a slice of culture, while giving her access to a wider pool
of customers.
Lem Cheong, The Hainan Story, Singapore – inspired by his
grandma’s rich heritage and flavourful recipes, Mr Cheong aims to
evolves traditional dishes, just as he evolves his business with
digital tools like Antom’s D-store solution to simplify his store
operations.
Lewis Ames, Wrimes Cosmetics, UK – starting with neon
face paint and pivoting to pet care during the pandemic, Mr Ames
uses WorldFirst to pay his suppliers and collect payments from
marketplaces easily, so he can grow his business from Stevenage to
the world.
These stories will be featured on out-of-home billboards,
starting in Europe, in time for the UEFA EURO 2024, of which Ant
International is the Official Payment Partner, and rolled out to
other global markets, and also on TV and social media.
About Ant International
Headquartered in Singapore, Ant International powers the future
of global commerce with digital innovation for everyone and every
business to thrive. In close collaboration with partners, we
support merchants of all sizes worldwide to realize their growth
aspirations through a comprehensive range of tech-driven digital
payment and financial services solutions.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626356788/en/
Scott Lai Ant International Scott.lai@antgroup.com