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- MariBank shops for customers on Shopee
- From our archives: Why Grab’s own ecosystem play is not for every market
- Fresh billions invested in Malaysia’s data center hub
Hello reader,
I’ve spoken with a number of digital bank operators in the past and learned that most Philippines-based ones rely on alternative data points when gauging credit risk.
These banks look at various data points, including rent and utility payments and ecommerce transaction history.
This edition’s featured story dives more into the latter. Natalia Goh, CEO of Singapore-based MariBank, told the Business Times that tapping into Shopee, the digital bank’s sister platform, gives it more information to base its decisions on when underwriting risk for SMEs.
On the consumer side, MariBank offers a higher interest rate to users who are also Shopee VIP subscribers. The rate is applied automatically through backend integration between the two platforms.
MariBank isn’t the only digital bank in Southeast Asia that uses ecosystem data this way. Anext Bank, a wholesale digital lender backed by Ant International, references point-of-sale data from its own merchant solutions unit, Antom, to extend unsecured credit to merchants.
Goh shared that 80% of MariBank customers have already linked their bank accounts to Shopee, while about 60% of the bank’s credit card users who pay on Shopee use the installment plan exclusive to cardholders. That said, it won’t be too long before other players like Grab-linked GXS tap more into the wider consumer bases of their backers.
Miguel Cordon, journalist
Top Story
MariBank’s plan to turn ecosystem banking into profit
Photo credit: Sea Group
Beyond lending, MariBank is positioning itself to build a regional banking group headquartered in Singapore. In 2025, it acquired SeaBank Philippines, which has since been renamed MariBank Philippines.
Goh said MariBank finds expansion relatively inexpensive, as it shares a similar blueprint across markets.
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