ANT-INTERNATIONAL
On 2024 International MSME Day, Ant International, a digital payment and financial services leader, shares that it supports almost 100 million Micro, Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) worldwide across its businesses and partner programs; and reinforces its commitments towards MSME digitalization and inclusion through the expansion of its services, new programs for skills development with industry partners, and a new global campaign.
This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626356788/en/
(Photo: Business Wire)
“MSMEs are the lifeblood of our economies, driving innovation, employment, and inclusive development,” said Douglas Feagin, President of Ant International. “Their resilience and entrepreneurial spirit deserve to be celebrated and nurtured. At Ant International, we firmly believe in the power of small and that small businesses can make a big impact. Fintech innovations today unlock new possibilities for small businesses to dream boldly and compete globally. Together with our partners, we want to ensure that every business and every person will have access to the knowledge, network, and digital tools to help them achieve their goals.”
Empowering growth for MSMEs through digitalization
Across its businesses, Ant International offers solutions that enable MSMEs to digitalize, opening new growth opportunities.
Alipay+, the cross-border mobile payments and marketing solutions operated by Ant International, announced an expansion of its global acceptance. As of June 2024, Alipay+ is accepted by over 90 million merchants in over 66 markets, connecting businesses to users of 30 international payment partners. With travel picking up and tourism a key driver of many local economies, this enables many small businesses to connect with global mobile-first consumers in a simple, cost-efficient manner.
A key development in driving digitalization at scale is through Alipay+’s integration with national QRs. Alipay+ is currently integrated with the national QRs of Singapore, Malaysia and South Korea, which counts MSMEs as majority of its merchants. In Singapore, Alipay+ transactions at hawker stalls have increased 52% in H1 2024, compared to H2 2023. In Malaysia and South Korea, Alipay+ transactions increased 44% and 54% respectively via PayNet and ZeroPay, in Q2 vs Q1 2024. Alipay+ also has partnerships with national QRs in Cambodia, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
As a leading provider of digital payment solutions, Antom supports merchants of all sizes, including MSMEs, across over 40 countries and regions. Through a single integration, Antom connects them to more than 250 payment methods in over 150 markets. Its D-store solution enables MSME merchants to digitalize their operations and set up an online store in just 10 minutes with zero upfront cost. Over 5000 outlets have already onboarded this solution, with average monthly transactions growing by 27% in Q2 vs Q1 2024.
In supporting MSMEs to do business globally, WorldFirst empowers more than 1 million SMEs with international payments to 200+ markets in over 100 currencies. To enable more SMEs to do cross-border trade, WorldFirst will expand to more markets in Southeast Asia and Europe this year. ANEXT Bank, a digital wholesale bank incorporated in Singapore, recently celebrated its second anniversary, with two times year-on-year increase in its customer base, of which 69% are micro businesses. To further support regional MSMEs, ANEXT Bank has introduced its second batch of SME Friends of ANEXT with forward-thinking small and growing businesses to co-create the “digital bank of tomorrow”.
Ant International has also recently unveiled bettr, a new global digital lending service to provide micro lending to MSMEs through embedded finance partnerships, further accelerating financial inclusion.
Harnessing industry partnerships to drive MSME development
Ant International believes in open industry collaboration to jointly support knowledge and skills development for MSMEs.
In Indonesia, Ant International and DANA will launch the second edition of SisBerdaya, an initiative that provides female micro entrepreneurs training, mentoring, and educational programs in business management and digital skills. Started in 2023, the first edition drew more than 2700 applicants, with 180 participants undergoing a one-month training, and grants awarded to 30 entrepreneurs.
In collaboration with the International Finance Corporation, 10x1000 Tech for Inclusion is an open learning platform to help future digital leaders develop more skills to drive greater impact within their communities. As of 2023, with the support of 40+ global strategic partners, more than 6,000 individual talents from 100+ countries and regions completed the 10x1000 learning programs, of which 90% are from developing markets and 60% work in MSMEs.
Earlier this year, Ant International launched Programme Sirius, with the support of 13 Asia Pacific fintech leaders to empower MSMEs in their transition towards sustainability, in line with the United Nationals Sustainable Development Goals.
Global campaign to ‘Embrace the power of small’
In celebration of International MSME Day, Ant International launches its “Embrace the power of small” campaign featuring three business owners and their journeys of digitalization. The business owners are:
Cholthicha Joyyangsuk (Numwan), Thailand – a micro entrepreneur in Bangkok selling Thai desserts on her tuktuk. With Alipay+, she can now easily accept mobile payments from tourists, sharing a slice of culture, while giving her access to a wider pool of customers.
Lem Cheong, The Hainan Story, Singapore – inspired by his grandma’s rich heritage and flavourful recipes, Mr Cheong aims to evolves traditional dishes, just as he evolves his business with digital tools like Antom’s D-store solution to simplify his store operations.
Lewis Ames, Wrimes Cosmetics, UK – starting with neon face paint and pivoting to pet care during the pandemic, Mr Ames uses WorldFirst to pay his suppliers and collect payments from marketplaces easily, so he can grow his business from Stevenage to the world.
These stories will be featured on out-of-home billboards, starting in Europe, in time for the UEFA EURO 2024, of which Ant International is the Official Payment Partner, and rolled out to other global markets, and also on TV and social media.
About Ant International
Headquartered in Singapore, Ant International powers the future of global commerce with digital innovation for everyone and every business to thrive. In close collaboration with partners, we support merchants of all sizes worldwide to realize their growth aspirations through a comprehensive range of tech-driven digital payment and financial services solutions.
To view this piece of content from cts.businesswire.com, please give your consent at the top of this page.
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240626356788/en/
About Business Wire
Subscribe to releases from Business Wire
Subscribe to all the latest releases from Business Wire by registering your e-mail address below. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Latest releases from Business Wire
Andersen Consulting styrker sit udbud af cybersikkerhed med tilføjelsen af S-RM11.12.2025 00:05:00 CET | Pressemeddelelse
Andersen Consulting indgår en samarbejdsaftale med S‑RM, en global efterretnings- og cybersikkerhedsvirksomhed, og styrker dermed sin evne til at understøtte globale kunder med risikostyring, hændelsesrespons og strategisk rådgivning. S-RM har hovedsæde i Storbritannien og leverer integrerede ydelser, der spænder over cyberrådgivning, digital efterforskning, hændelseshåndtering, virksomhedsefterretning og due diligence i forbindelse med transaktioner. Firmaet betjener family offices, kapitalfonde, Fortune 500-virksomheder og mellemstore virksomheder inden for bl.a. finans-, olie- og sundhedssektoren, og tilbyder praktisk cybersikkerhedsstyring samt tilpassede risikoplatforme. Med døgnåben hændelseshåndtering og dybdegående efterforskningsekspertise hjælper S-RM organisationer med at styrke deres modstandsdygtighed og træffe informerede beslutninger i komplekse miljøer. "I en tid, hvor trusler konstant udvikler sig, skal organisationer være proaktive, ikke reaktive," udtaler Heyrick Bon
Canva Unveils 2026 Design Trends: The Year of ‘Imperfect by Design’10.12.2025 23:52:00 CET | Press release
Canva’s third annual Design Trends Report uncovers insights from millions of Canva users and billions of designs to predict the must-know visual trends for creators and brands in 2026.90% surge in DIY-inspired searches, reflecting a shift toward raw, personal, and imperfect design.85% increase in searches for Zine and Substack inspired layouts as creators gravitate toward editorial style storytelling.80% of creators say 2026 is the year to regain creative control, embracing AI as a partner while prioritizing styles that feel human.54% growth in searches for clean layouts and simple branding as audiences gravitate toward pared back styles.527% surge in lo-fi aesthetic searches in favor of nostalgia driven, emotionally expressive visuals.220% jump in searches for “liminal” and “uncanny” content as lines between real and surreal blur. Canva, the world’s leading all-in-one visual communication platform, today unveiled its third annual Design Trends Report with bold predictions for creativi
Audiencerate Achieves Google Customer Match Partner Status, strengthening its role as a Global Data Provider10.12.2025 22:40:00 CET | Press release
Audiencerate, an international technology company specializing in data activation solutions and platforms within the AdTech and MarTech sectors, has been officially awarded by Google as a Customer Match Upload Partner. This certification is granted to a restricted number of global operators (https://support.google.com/google-ads/answer/7361372?hl=en) authorized to manage and onboard first-party data into the Google Ads and DV360 ecosystem. The company strengthen its strategic partnership with Google by adding the Customer Match Upload Partner accreditation to its existing status as a certified Google Data Provider. This new credential enables Audiencerate to seamlessly integrate proprietary audience segments and data into Google’s advertising platforms. The combination of these two accreditations represents an exceptionalsituation in the international landscape and solidifies Audiencerate's position in the digital advertising market, which is increasingly reliant on first-party data. T
Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB) Development Group – Official Statement10.12.2025 21:06:00 CET | Press release
On 8 September 2025, the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank (DSRB) Development Group convened a high-level meeting in the City of London with representatives from 37 nations, including all G7 members, alongside the European Commission, NATO, European Parliament, Global Banks, and Ratings Agencies to discuss the DSRB. A number of countries have now indicated their intention to begin the formal steps required to bring the DSRB into existence. This phased pattern of engagement is standard in the creation of international financial institutions, which typically begin with a core group of anchor nations and expand as additional members join through charter negotiations and subsequent capital rounds. The DSRB is designed to complement the European Union’s SAFE initiative, offering a broader multilateral platform that brings together NATO and Indo-Pacific nations and mobilises global capital to build the balance-sheet capacity required to finance nations’ defence spending and long-term res
ClickUp 4.0's Craft & Quality is Available Today, Maximizing Human Productivity10.12.2025 19:26:00 CET | Press release
Hand-crafted to deliver the most polished, powerful ClickUp experience ever created ClickUp today announced the launch of ClickUp 4.0, a groundbreaking release designed to end the chaos of work sprawl and usher in a new era of work. With a bold vision for the convergence of software, people, and AI, ClickUp 4.0 delivers a suite of powerful new features that empower teams to do their best work in one converged workspace. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251210712132/en/ A new era of ClickUp For years, organizations have struggled with fragmented workflows, siloed tools, and the constant friction of context switching. ClickUp 4.0 is the answer: a single, beautifully crafted workspace that brings together tasks, docs, goals, chat, and AI-powered automation. The result is a platform that not only saves time but also sparks creativity and collaboration at every level. “Software is converging - we always knew it woul
In our pressroom you can read all our latest releases, find our press contacts, images, documents and other relevant information about us.
Visit our pressroom