How we built a central repository of FinTech knowlege and EY Solutions - The EY FinTech Hub

Introduction

We started imagining the EY FinTech Hub in early 2018, wanting to look at how technology was already, and could further, reimagine, disrupt and add new capabilities to the Financial Services Industry. We analyzed the emergence of different FinTechs across product sub sectors such as payments, lending and insurance. We studied their innovative use cases of financial technologies. Lastly, we partnered with the best ones, bringing together EY’s expertise in the Financial Services Industry. 

We took our learnings, and defined the vision behind The EY FinTech Hub: to build a FinTech knowledge base for ASEAN. With this, we started constructing the EY FinTech Hub in mid 2018.

The Hub would serve as a one-stop portal for both regional banks as well as FinTechs who are looking to increase their customer base, expand their revenue boost and deliver services in a pioneering way. We brought together a dedicated team of technology experts, growth specialists, design thinkers and start-up entrepreneurs to build this ecosystem. This would allow prospective clients, and anyone else interested in the FinTech space to discover and obtain a better understanding of EY’s best-in-class FinTech solution offerings.

Solutions

The Hub presents these best-in-class technology solutions through Proof-of-Concept kits. Solutions exist across all key financial service domains: AI & data, API Banking, Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Cyber Security, Digital Banking, Insurance, Lending, Payments, Regulation, Robo-Advisory, Social Commerce, Transaction Banking and Wealth & Asset Management. These solutions are provided by leading scaleups which have proven to provide measurable time-bound business outcomes.

It also presents our FinTech services portfolio: EY Assured, EY Blueprint and EY Voyager. EY Assured helps identify, assess and manage the risks associated with increased use of technology in financial services. EY Blueprint aids the development of scalable and sustainable businesses by undertaking ecosystem collaborations. EY Voyager helps build real products and facilitate commercial success through leveraging EY financial services experience and technology capabilities.

Thought Leaderships

However, clients need a trusted partner to help them through their digitization journey. As is common knowledge, embracing technology has its risks. There are financial, technological and operational risks. Several large MNCs have failed at their digitalization journey, largely because of a poor understanding of their market and regional landscape, the need for a digital DNA and the different risks.

EY FinTech Hub is built on the value proposition that the EY FinTech Team is the trusted partner that can help prospective clients navigate the evolving Financial Services landscape in ASEAN. We can help our clients by providing them actionable intelligence across key countries in ASEAN – Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore in various domains.

EY FinTech Hub contains EY’s library of primary research & analysis on the impact of technology in Financial Services across the ASEAN topograph

• ASEAN FinTech Census 2018: The ASEAN FinTech Census is a research initiative undertaken by EY to understand the key factors shaping FinTech and to bring to the forefront the voice of 251 FinTechs highlighting key areas of growth, opportunities and potential challenges and an analysis of FinTech’s responses on revenue growth, capital requirements, regulatory support, operating environment and plans for future expansion.

• FinTech Ecosystem Playbook: The playbook captures the journey of 26 FinTech hubs globally, their experiences and learnings in the process of building a strong financial services ecosystem. This report serves to facilitate hubs to think global and act local through an appreciation of global trends, local drivers and regional opportunities.

• Industrializing Blockchain in ASEAN: Covers implications of Blockchain, its key developments, how it impacts countries and industries across ASEAN.

• The future of FinTech and financial services: What’s the next big bet?: Showcases the investment landscape for FinTech firms today, pivotal demand and supply factors as work for FinTech solutions, trends for industry convergence and analysis on the rapidly changing industry dynamics among key players.

• FinTechs in Sub-Saharan Africa: Explores the Sub-Saharan African (SSA) FinTech landscape, regional FinTech Hubs and ecosystems, international FinTechs currently operating in SSA and current regional FinTech outlook.

• State of FinTech in ASEAN: This white paper curates information regarding FinTech in the ASEAN region. Macroeconomic analysis of the region, consumer profiles, trends, regulation changes and in-depth analysis on the landscapes of the various FinTech subsectors provide insights into the current state of the FinTech industry in the ASEAN region.

Impact that we’ve created

EY FinTech Hub also showcases the journey our clients have already begun, the milestones they’ve achieved and the impact EY has already made in our clients’ digitalization efforts. It contains case studies for different clients who have engaged EY to help them maximize their digital investment returns:

DBS Bank: Showcases EY contribution towards formulation of strategy of DBS to enter in the Indonesian market While competing with wallets and large incumbents, new entrant digital banks to target niche areas instead of glorious marketing heavy areas to drive long lasting impact.

FE Credit- FE Credit, one of Vietnam’s the largest consumer credit company, worked with EY to implement a robo-lending platform app ($NAP). It digitizes the whole process of customer on-boarding and loan application. FE Credit reduced the borrowing process from 4-5 days to less than 15 minutes, thus drastically increasing its appeal to customers, while overcoming the challenges inherent in the traditional lending model

YOLO - In September 2018, the bank launched YOLO, the first digital bank in Vietnam, after working with Ernst & Young Vietnam Limited on the process from market research, conceptualization to creating minimum viable product.

TTIFC- The financial services sector is a notable contributor to the Trinidad & Tobago economy, at approximately 8% of GDP. As the financial services industry has experienced rapid innovations all over the world with the help of various technologies, there is a need for T&T to remain competitive and compete at a global level by embracing and integrating the use of FinTech further into their economy.

Vietnam Fintech Challenge- EY supported the FinTech Challenge Vietnam in partnership with Vietnamese government bodies including the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) and Mekong Business Initiative (MBI). The program attracted 141 applicants, of which 45 were from Vietnam and 96 were foreign applicants from 27 different countries.

MAS (Singapore FinTech Festival)- Organized by Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), powered by EY, Singapore FinTech Festival - Global Investor Summit 2018 is targeted at promising ASEAN enterprises, FinTechs and interested investors.

Credit Suisse- Organized by EY and Credit Suisse, the 2019 CS-EY FinTech Forum took place on the 27th and 28th of June. The aim was to bring the finest business and investment opportunities to potential FinTech unicorns with expertise in payments, investments, lending and insurance.

I am proud to say that The EY FinTech Hub has been awarded the regional Better Begins with you award for 2019 in FSO, APAC.

We have seen great reception since the beginning of The Hub. The site has had thousands of file downloads; with the DBS Bank case study seeing 24,000+ views. EY India and EY LATAM have also modelled their regional sites based on the EY FinTech Hub, a testament to the team enabling the ecosystem through expertise and insights.

We have successfully built a central repository of FinTech knowledge and intelligence spanning across ASEAN that showcases our key FinTech solutions. This can be used by prospective clients, nascent FinTech startups, all the way to keen university students looking to know more about the FinTech landscape in ASEAN. At EY, we are proud to be part of building a better working world.