Atome’s profit surge cannot mask BNPL’s underlying problems

More: Trust Bank’s flying start in Singapore and the shutdown of Vietnam's Propzy. [Read from your browser]( Daily Newsletter --------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to Tech in Asia's free Daily Newsletter! Get full access to our subscribers-only Daily Newsletter and other insightful analysis on the big and messy topics of Asia’s tech and startup community by [registering here](. --------------------------------------------------------------- Hello {NAME} A lot has been said of how Southeast Asia’s buy now, pay later players [have bucked gloomy global industry trends]( benefiting from BNPL’s relative nascency in the region and avoiding the rough patch that their more established counterparts such as Klarna, Afterpay, and Affirm are facing in Western markets. At first glance, Atome’s 2021 results would suggest that the benefit of the doubt given to Asia-based firms in the industry is largely warranted. But a closer look at the earnings report will reveal that the Singa​​pore-based BNPL service does share certain worrying underlying trends with its struggling global peers. For instance, Atome saw its marketing expenses balloon nearly 5x last year, hinting at the intensifying competition in reaching target audiences. This is a trend shared by troubled BNPL giants Klarna, Affirm, and Afterpay, who have had to spend heavily on advertising to stave off both established players such as PayPal and Apple, as well as a growing number of BNPL upstarts. In today’s featured piece, Tech in Asia dissects Atome’s latest earnings report, which not only brings to fore the firm’s encouraging profit and revenue growth rate but also highlights how the Advance Intelligence Group-owned company has pivoted to focus on different Southeast Asian markets. Also, if you’re an entrepreneur looking for funding, [fill out this form]( to get your company featured on our list of fundraising startups. - Shravanth  ---------------------------------------------------------------  THE BIG STORY [Atome’s 2021 profits nearly triple as revenue sources shift]( Atome’s earnings showed solid profit growth, but revenue from the Philippines and Vietnam shrank in favor of Singapore and Malaysia.  --------------------------------------------------------------- TRENDING NEWS [SG digibank Trust hits 100,000 customers within 2 weeks of launch]( Users of ages ranging from 18 to over 90 signed up to the platform, Trust said. [Vietnamese proptech startup Propzy to shut down]( CEO John Le said in an email that Propzy’s efforts to grow the business amid the pandemic resulted in losses that could not be recovered. [Fintech firm launches global research hub in Singapore]( Cake DeFi will also invest US$50 million into research and development over the next four years. [SG Web3 platform concludes oversubscribed pre-seed round]( Playground’s funding round was co-led by East Ventures and Mirana Ventures, alongside other institutions and angel investors. [YC-backed construction tech firm cements $10m series A]( India-based 91Squarefeet builds physical retail stores for major brands. [SG fintech firm M-Daq expands into Japan with new office]( M-Daq has processed over US$32 billion in cross-border transactions over 45 markets since the launch of its Aladdin FX ecommerce solution in 2016. ---------------------------------------------------------------  EVENTS HAPPENING You can also check out a curated list of trending tech events [over here](. - *Event*  [Tech in Asia Conference 2022]( from September 21 to 22 at Marina Bay Sands, Singapore Priority Passes are sold out and General Passes are selling fast! Don't miss this chance to catch more than 50 speakers, various exhibits, workshops, and networking events in Singapore at Asia's largest startup conference. 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Further, attendees can showcase their businesses and solutions during demo days, and selected participants will get the chance to meet VCs to further discuss growth plans.  ---------------------------------------------------------------  WHO'S HIRING You can post a job [here]( or search for jobs [here](. - [CTO / VP of Engineering]( at Propseller Singapore, Singapore - [Regional Head of Performance Marketing Strategy]( at Ematic Solutions Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia - [Data Analysis mentor]( at Refocus Manila, Philippines - [Senior BackEnd Engineer (Remote)]( at TreeDots Indonesia Bulk Terminal, Indonesia - [UI/UX Lead (for Getplus)]( at PT Merah Cipta Media Jakarta, Indonesia - [Lead Game Programmer]( at Agate Bandung, Java, Indonesia --------------------------------------------------------------- [ADVERTISE]( | [SUBSCRIBE]( P.S. Don't miss out on the biggest tech news and analysis. Add newsletter@techinasia.com to your address book, contacts, or safe sender list. 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