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In focus
- Singapore-based Anext Bank wants to finance companies, using GPUs as collateral
- J&T Express’ momentum shows no signs of slowing in Southeast Asia
- Shopee trims hundreds of roles, affecting about 8% of its global developer workforce
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Demand for graphics processing units (GPUs), deemed essential hardware for the AI revolution, has surged in recent years. Prices have skyrocketed as a result, prompting many companies to rent them instead of buying.
In short, GPUs have become hot commodities.
Singapore-based digital bank Anext Bank sees an opportunity in this trend. The Ant International-owned firm plans to expand into GPU financing and lend to companies against their AI hardware as collateral.
With this move, Anext aims to expand both its secured and unsecured lending businesses.
In today’s top story, Benjamin Cher from The Business Times speaks with Kai Qiu, the digital bank’s CEO, about its plans concerning GPU financing and beyond, as well as the intense competition in Singapore’s digital banking sector.
Besides Anext, there are four other major digital banks in the city-state: GXS, Trust Bank, MariBank, and GLDB. With Trust Bank recently recording its first monthly net profit, competition is heating up more than ever. Anext reckons GPU financing could give it an edge.
Meanwhile, J&T Express continues to build on its strong momentum this year. During the 6.6 shopping festival, its parcel volume in Southeast Asia jumped 83.5%, reaching an average daily volume of 35.51 million parcels.
So, in today’s Spotlight, I take a closer look at how J&T Express has managed to sustain its growth despite the increasing dominance of in-house logistics services such as SPX Express.
We also have the latest on Shopee, which recently laid off hundreds of developers amid a pivot to AI.
Jofie Yordan, journalist
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