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NEWS
- The Business Times onNovember 28, 2018
Hong Kong-based financial services and technology company Oriente announced on Wednesday that it has completed a US$105 million initial funding round, with investments from the founders and a group of family offices including members of the Berjaya Group, JG Summit Holdings, and Sinar Mas.
- TechCrunch onNovember 28, 2018
A fintech whale quietly going about its business in Southeast Asia has come out from under the radar after Oriente, a Hong Kong-based business headed by Skype’s first employee, announced that it has raised a whopping $105 million.
- Bloomberg onNovember 28, 2018
Geoffrey Prentice, co-founder of Oriente, discusses his banking services company targeting Southeast Asia, why investors are investing in his company, why he’s targeting unbanked communities in Southeast Asia, his app-based ventures and latest funding round. He speaks on “Bloomberg Daybreak: Asia.”
- Bloomberg onNovember 28, 2018
A Hong Kong startup called Oriente raised $105 million as it expands online lending operations in Southeast Asia and develops new products and technologies for markets like Indonesia and the Philippines.
- Nikkei Asian Review onNovember 28, 2018
Skype co-founder Geoffrey Prentice has raised $105 million in the first significant funding round for his latest venture, a microlending business in Southeast Asia, intensifying the battle for the region’s vast unbanked population.
- The Straits Times onNovember 28, 2018
Hong Kong-based financial services and technology company Oriente announced on Wednesday (Nov 28) that it has completed a US$105 million (S$144.7 million) initial funding round, with investments from the founders and a group of family offices including members of the Berjaya Group, JG Summit Holdings and Sinar Mas.
- Dealstreet Asia onNovember 28, 2018
Hong Kong-based fintech company Oriente has completed its first funding round of $105 million, one of the largest initial rounds in the industry.
- KR-Asia onNovember 28, 2018
Hong Kong-based online lender Oriente today announced a US$105 million initial round of financing to scale its business across Southeast Asia. The fintech startup already runs lending platforms in the Philippines and Indonesia and will launch in Vietnam soon.
- Tech in Asia onNovember 28, 2018
Southeast Asia’s 600 million-strong market is one of the most rapidly growing in the world. Despite this, only 27 percent of its population have bank accounts, data from professional services firm KPMG shows. In poorer countries like Cambodia, the numbers go even lower at 5 percent.
- Finextra onNovember 28, 2018
Oriente, the Hong Kong-based financial services and technology company committed to unlocking financial inclusion in emerging Asia, announced today that it had completed a US$105 million initial funding round.
- Fintechnews.hk onNovember 28, 2018
Oriente, the Hong Kong-based financial services and technology company announced today that it had completed a US$ 105 million initial funding round. This included investment from the founders and a group of family offices including members of the Berjaya Group, JG Summit Holdings, Inc., and Sinar Mas.
- Markets Insider onNovember 27, 2018
– One of the largest initial funding rounds in Fintech globally
– Financing set to develop technology, strategic partnerships, and further regional expansion
– Focused on accelerating financial inclusion for Southeast Asia’s underserved and unbanked
- Brink Asia onNovember 28, 2018
More than a third of the world’s adult population, or some 1.7 billion people, have little or no access to formal financial services. In Southeast Asia, the problem is even greater, with more than 70 percent of the region’s estimated 640-million population remaining unbanked and a majority of them being from low- and middle-income segments.
- The Business Times onNovember 27, 2018
To move towards financial inclusion, the public and private sectors must work together and methodically address inherent limitations in existing financial systems that have resulted in millions being left behind.
This can be achieved by providing equal and affordable access to basic financial services, helping build financial identities, and education on the basics of personal finance for unbanked populations.
- The Business Times onNovember 26, 2018
Fintech has the potential to be the silver bullet to solve for financial inclusion, but it requires every stakeholder to take a collaborative and responsible approach. Recent issues within the P2P-lending industry in China and subsequently in Indonesia are both cause for concern, but also an indication of how some solutions presented by FinTech are often unviable or short-sighted.
When companies act irresponsibly in the name of profits, there is an erosion of customer confidence, which can serve as a hammer blow to the socio-economic progress that financial inclusion should bring.
- The Manila Times onNovember 15, 2018
Cashalo, the Filipino technology and financial services company committed to unlocking financial inclusion, launched its standalone mobile app to media and key stakeholders, which was supported by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
Guest of Honor Joyce Suficiencia, acting deputy director for BSP’s Inclusive Finance Office expressed the BSP’s support for Cashalo’s shared mission to open financial access and opportunity for all Filipinos in the country, highlighting the importance of digital innovations that make financial services more accessible, convenient and responsive to consumers’ needs and aspirations.
- Tech In Asia onNovember 7, 2018
Oriente’s mission is to allow the unbanked and underbanked communities in Southeast Asia – specifically, the Philippines, Indonesia, and Vietnam – to tap into financial services. According to a report by professional services firm KPMG, around 438 million people around the region have no access to formal financial services.
- Manila Bulletin onOctober 30, 2018
Cashalo, a Filipino technology and financial services company committed to accelerating financial inclusion, officially launched its standalone mobile app that delivers access to affordable and secure credit for millions of underbanked consumers and MSMEs in the Philippines who need access to reliable and trusted financing options.
- The Manila Bulletin onOctober 23, 2018
Mobile app Cashalo, a joint venture between JG Summit subsidiary Express Holdings and Oriente (who’s founders are behind Skype and LU.com), is scouting for more partners to boost its fintech business and to become one of the biggest in the country.
Just months old, the company said in a press release that it has already “elevated the economic well-being of tens of thousands Filipinos” and “to serve more communities (Cashalo) is actively seeking strategic partners to add to its existing list”.
- The Manila Bulletin onOctober 30, 2018
Cashalo, a Filipino technology and financial services company committed to accelerating financial inclusion, officially launched its standalone mobile app that delivers access to affordable and secure credit for millions of underbanked consumers and MSMEs in the Philippines who need access to reliable and trusted financing options.
“With Cashalo we are developing a new infrastructure that addresses the needs of underbanked Filipinos that don’t have access to essential financial services,” said Geoffrey Prentice, co-Founder, Oriente.
- The Philippine Star onOctober 24, 2018
Financial technology firm Cashalo yesterday launched its stand-alone mobile app as part of its commitment to initially invest P10 billion over three years to help boost financial inclusion in the country.
Oriente co-founder Geoffrey Prentice said Cashalo is developing a new infrastructure that addresses the needs of underbanked Filipinos that do not have access to essential financial services.
- The Manila Bulletin onOctober 23, 2018
Mobile app Cashalo, a joint venture between JG Summit subsidiary Express Holdings and Oriente (who’s founders are behind Skype and LU.com), is scouting for more partners to boost its fintech business and to become one of the biggest in the country.
Just months old, the company said in a press release that it has already “elevated the economic well-being of tens of thousands Filipinos” and “to serve more communities (Cashalo) is actively seeking strategic partners to add to its existing list”.
- Digfin onOctober 22, 2018
Oriente, a Hong Kong-based fintech providing data-driven consumer finance in Southeast Asia, is now rolling out in Indonesia after having launched in the Philippines, with Vietnam next, says Geoffrey Prentice, co-founder and head global business strategy.
“We are taking an Amazon approach,” Prentice said. “We are building a mass market, driving interest rates down to the point where we can be marginally profitable, and then we expand the pie.”
- South China Morning Post onOctober 17, 2018
Geoff Prentice is now co-founder of financial solutions tech start-up Oriente, which offers purpose-based loans of between US$40 and US$150 to underserved consumers and MSMEs in emerging Asia’s fastest growing markets.
Skype's Co-founder Geoffrey Prentice Describes in Q&A How He's Now an Entrepreneur in Southeast Asia
- Business Next onJuly 27, 2018
Geoffrey Prentice co-founded Skype over a decade ago. He’s now a seasoned venture capitalist with nearly 20 years of experience founding and investing in technology companies across the globe. His latest venture is Oriente, a Hong Kong-based regional financial technology company, which he founded last year.
- Vulcan Post onJune 08, 2018
Many Filipinos are already familiar with tycoon John Gokongwei, Jr: one of the richest men in the Philippines, and serial entrepreneur that has a hand in Cebu Pacific Airlines, a food and beverage empire, and a plethora of other ventures.
- ImpactAlpha onJune 11, 2018
Only about 30% of Filipinos have a bank account and to access credit, they often have to resort to predatory lenders and pay punishingly high interest rates.
- Bloomberg onJune 06, 2018
Billionaire John Gokongwei, owner of the Philippines’ largest snack maker and budget airline, and a Skype Inc. founder will invest as much as $200 million over three years to lend to millions of unbanked Filipinos.
- Philippine Daily Inquirer onJune 07, 2018
Gokongwei-led JG Summit Holdings and Hong Kong-based global financial services and technology firm Oriente are jointly investing at least P10 billion in rolling out Cashalo, a new mobile lending platform that offers cheaper credit to people who are not served by the formal banking system.
- The Philippine Star onJune 07, 2018
Gokongwei-owned JG Summit Holdings Inc. and Hong Kong-based Oriente are pouring in P10 billion over the next three years to build and expand the reach of Cashalo, a mobile application that provides on-demand access to loans to Filipinos.
- Inquirer.net onAugust 01, 2017
Greater China-based Oriente and Express Holdings, Inc. (a subsidiary of JG Summit Holdings, Inc.), through an exclusive partnership, will address the financial exclusion problem of underbanked consumers and MSMEs in the Philippines.
- Nikkei Asian Review onAugust 02, 2017
Philippine conglomerate and Hong Kong-based partner to tap underserved markets
- ccn.com onAugust 04, 2017
The Philippines and Hong Kong are joining forces in a fintech partnership to tap into the unbanked market in the region.
- The Straits Times onAugust 12, 2017
JG Summit Holdings, a leading conglomerate founded in 1957 by Mr John Gokongwei, has been continuing its expansion spree in Asean and beyond.
- Philstar onAugust 02, 2017
A subsidiary of JG Summit Holdings Inc. has formed a joint venture with China-based Oriente to set up a digital financial service company to serve underbanked consumers and micro, small and medium enterprises in the Philippines.
- BusinessMirror onJanuary 31, 2018
Oriente Express has come together with other digital finance companies to establish FinTechAlliance.ph.
- Inquirer.net onAugust 03, 2017
A unit of conglomerate JG Summit Holdings Inc. has set up a financial technology (fintech) venture that offers a digital credit marketplace for Filipinos with immediate funding needs, including payments for tuition, unexpected medical expenses or even small business financing.
- Entrepreneur PH onAugust 01, 2017
Oriente-Express aims to boost credit for consumers and SMEs at “attractive interest rates”
- The Nation onOctober 10, 2017
JG SUMMIT HOLDINGS, the group behind Cebu Air in the Philippines, aims to expand its pioneering petrochemical business and financial services.