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Smartphones: Under pressure from Chinese companies, Panasonic to exit low-end phones segment
Japan's Panasonic Corp, about a century-old powerhouse in consumer electronics, wouldn't sell feature-and entry-level smartphones in India any longer because of the intense competition from Chinese brands. In a strategy overhaul, Panasonic would also bring the distribution responsibility in-house, and pare down the market-share targets to about 5% in two years from initial projections running into two digits.
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- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Thailand’s Largest Bank Launches $30 Million FinTech Fund ‘Beacon’
As Thailand’s largest bank by revenue, Kasikorn’s foray to back and invest in FinTech startups underlines the growing appetite for digital banking in the country. Between April and September 2016, the Bank of Thailand – the country’s central bank – revealed a marked 26% uptick in commercial mobile and internet banking transactions.
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- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- fintech
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Asia catches the sustainable investment bug… at last
Asia ex-Japan has been a latecomer to the trend, accounting for just 0.2% of global socially responsible investment (SRI) assets. SRI assets in the region still increased 15.7% from 2014 though and investors are counting on a lot more to come.
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- Investing
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- impact investing
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Naspers pours $5M into Coins, a fintech startup for Southeast Asia’s unbanked population
Coins is focused on offering financial services for the unbanked in the Philippines and Thailand. It uses the blockchain as its underlying technology to facilitate transfers and remittances. It announced the new funding — which comes via the Naspers Ventures division — as an extension to the $5 million Series A round that it closed last October.
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- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- digital payments, fintech
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Mobile money flourishing in Myanmar
Young migrant workers throughout the country use mobile money to make remittances to families back home. In Myanmar, only 20% of the population has a bank account. Thus, unbanked people often just carry stacks of cash when returning home.
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- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
- Tags
- remittances
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Annie Ryu’s Blueprint for a Non-Exploitative Global Supply Chain
Ryu saw an opportunity, but, true to form, it wasn't one that would serve just her, and she founded her company in 2011 with the goal of creating a sustainable supply chain. Today, she partners with more than 350 farming families and supplies 2,000 retailers.
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- Agriculture
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Five countries to watch for e-payments
A study shows that 34% of Europeans and 38% of Americans would be willing to go cash-free if they could, Reuters reported. In Asia, China is an early adopter of digital payments, with 95% of Chinese using smartphones and mobile wallets to pay for goods and services.
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- Technology
- Region
- Asia Pacific
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Opinion: Adopting the sustainable development goals is a business opportunity for Australia
Business as usual is not an option. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), launched in 2015, are 17 goals for ending poverty, transforming health and education, improving our cities and communities, addressing gender equity and tackling urgent challenges such as climate change. Collectively, they propose a new development pathway, based on partnership between governments, civil society and business that could transform our societies.
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- Uncategorized
- Region
- Asia Pacific