A rollercoaster week for Binance

The Top Up is Tech in Asia’s free newsletter that breaks down the biggest stories and trends in fintech. [Read from your browser]( The Top Up 💵 Welcome to The Top Up! Delivered every Wednesday via email and through the Tech in Asia website, this free newsletter breaks down the biggest stories and trends in fintech. If you’re not a subscriber, get access by [registering here](. Hello {NAME} Binance users in the Lion City were gripping their seats last week as they watched the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) take aim at the cryptocurrency trading exchange. First, the regulator placed global platform Binance.com on an Investor Alert Watch list for providing payments services to the city-state’s residents without the relevant licenses. Then just a day later, MAS ordered Binance to stop offering payments services to Singapore residents. At the time of writing, the embattled firm has said that it will [restrict its services in the country]( ceasing to offer payment options and trading pairs in Singapore dollars from September 10. The crypto exchange - one of the world’s largest, with tens of billions of US dollars flowing through it every day - has been fighting fires. Apart from getting scrutinized by authorities in the UK, Japan, Hong Kong, and the US, some disgruntled investors have begun to take legal action against Binance after trading snags on the platform in May. In this week’s story, Derek Lim details how faulty tokens and trading glitches have caused hundreds of investors to sour on Binance. -- Melissa THE BIG STORY  [Why angry investors are trying to sue Binance]( Image credit: Timmy Loen Hundreds of users are suing the world’s most widely used crypto exchange to recover losses that they claim were undeserved. TRENDING NEWS Check out Tech in Asia’s coverage of Asia’s fintech scene [here](.  1️⃣ [Ovo leads in Indonesia’s digital payments war, report says]( Photo credit: Ovo Ovo is ahead of its competitors - including Gojek’s GoPay, Sea Group’s ShopeePay, Ant Financial’s Dana, and LinkAja - in Indonesia in terms of brand awareness and the number of active users, according to a report by London-based research firm Kadence International. While Ovo is the country’s most popular payment method for online food ordering and for offline transactions, ShopeePay leads in the online shopping category. Why it matters: Local and foreign e-wallet players are locked in a battle to draw in Indonesia’s consumers. ShopeePay, which ranked third, has made significant gains in the country, beating local players like Dana and LinkAja. We previously discussed how Shopee shrewedly made use of free delivery and cashback deals to [win over users]( in the past year, while its competitors were still reeling from the pandemic. 2️⃣ [Binance to restrict Singapore services on global crypto platform]( Photo credit: Burdun / 123RF The cryptocurrency exchange operator said it will halt providing payment options and trading pairs for the Singapore dollar through Binance.com from September 10 onwards. Binance’s international app will also be removed from app stores in the city-state. Binance.com is not to be confused with Binance Asia Services, a separate entity that operates local cryptocurrency exchange platform Binance.sg, which are not covered by the restrictions. Why it matters: This isn’t the first time the company is facing pressure from the authorities. The heightened attention on Binance comes amid growing regulatory scrutiny into the entire blockchain sector. In the “play-to-earn” segment for instance, the Philippines has begun [imposing a tax]( on Axie Infinity players who get money from selling their in-game “pets.” Stricter regulations are widely expected to follow suit. 3️⃣ [Ant-backed Korean payment major Kakao Pay reduces IPO target to $1.3b]( Kakao Pay, the country’s largest online payments service owned by Kakao Group, has lowered the target of its upcoming initial public offering from US$14.1 billion to US$1.3 billion, amid regulators’ concerns over soaring valuations. Why it matters: Scheduled on October 14, this trading debut follows the blockbuster listings of digital bank KakaoBank and game developer Krafton in what has been a boom year for South Korea’s stock market. Some [US$17.25 billion]( has been raised through IPOs in the country this year - that’s 4x the amount in 2020. The move raises questions about the soaring valuations of technology firms on the public market. Despite the exuberance of retail investors, not all companies have outperformed on their debut: KakaoBank climbed 78% on its first day, Krafton fell 8.8%. 4️⃣ [Hong Kong-based online brokerage Futu posts 129% rise in quarterly revenue]( Photo credit: Futu Holdings The quarterly revenue of Futu, the company that owns investing platform Moomoo, grew 129% to hit US$203.1 million. This was driven in part by a higher number of registered users on its platform and a strong customer retention rate, which the firm says was at 98% in the first half of 2021. According to the company, about 80% of its newly acquired paying clients resulted from its growth in Hong Kong as well as Singapore and other overseas markets. Why it matters: Futu’s steady rise mirrors the increasing interest in retail investing made accessible by online trading brokerages like Moomoo and US-based Robinhood, which charge zero or low fees. That said, Robinhood warned last month of a slowdown in trading volume, even as it reported a doubling of revenue - bolstered by a surge in crypto trading - in the second quarter of this year. We previously [explored]( how the emergence of China’s “Robinhoods” were threatening old-school brokerages in Singapore. STARTUP WATCH 1️⃣ [Fintech startup Jeeves raises $57m, goes from YC to $500m valuation in one year]( US-based Jeeves describes itself as a “cross country, cross currency” expense management platform that aims to disrupt traditional banking infrastructure, which is typically country-specific. Using a corporate card issued by Jeeves, a company can spend and pay back in different currencies, reducing foreign exchange fees. The Tencent-backed firm, which operates in Mexico, Canada, Columbia, the UK, and Europe, is eyeing an expansion to Asia next year.  2️⃣ [Krungsri Finnovate joins $41m round of Singapore digital assets exchange]( Zipmex offers financial services including interest-bearing accounts on crypto-wallets and a digital asset payment solution for businesses looking to accept cryptocurrency as payment. The company has almost 1 million clients and processed more than US$4 billion in gross transaction volume to date. In Singapore, the digital assets exchange is currently in the advanced stages of applying for a major payment institution license with MAS. That’s it for this edition - we hope you liked it! Not your cup of tea? You can unsubscribe from this newsletter by going to our preference center at the bottom of this email. In the meantime, if you have any feedback or ideas, feel free to get in touch with Terence, our editor-in-chief, at terence@techinasia.com. See you next week! P.S. 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