Ant International’s next payments play

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In focus

• ​​Ant International’s head honcho on its evolution beyond payments
• ​​Grab’s acquisition of Atome is official
• Autonomous driving makes strides in Asia

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Hello reader,

What does Ant International want to be?

If you’d asked Douglas Feagin, Ant International’s president, this question a few years ago, the answer would have been simpler.

But today, the global arm of China’s Ant Group is a sprawling financial services firm that spans payments, merchant acquiring, cross-border services, and lending.

As Ant International expands beyond its backyard of Southeast Asia, however, it faces a host of challenges. For one, QR-code-based payments aren’t as prevalent in markets like Europe, Latin America, or the Middle East – meaning the firm will have to invest in user education.

Much of its efforts have also turned towards AI applications in commerce. In the future Feagin envisions, consumers and merchants will lean more heavily on AI agents to search for solutions.

Today’s top story is an in-depth Q&A with Feagin, who discussed Ant International’s evolution over the past decade and what Chinese payment innovations he thinks people should be paying attention to.

In other payments news, Grab has confirmed its acquisition of 60% of buy now, pay later firm Atome, after news about the deal surfaced last week.

It’s the latest in a series of fintech acquisitions that the super app has made in the past year – one that promises much upside, assuming the BNPL train continues running at full speed.

Melissa Goh, senior editor

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Top Story

Ant International’s next payments bet: AI agents

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