A new way to pay?

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Hello readers,

If I told you that you could buy anything from a latte to an airline ticket using your digital money of any form — be it bitcoin, GrabRewards, or airline miles — would it sound far-fetched?

That’s the future that Synqa is preparing itself for. Scroll down for a quick summary.

But first, your quick bytes for today:

1️⃣ GoViet is now Gojek Vietnam

Gojek and GoViet have united to bring more motorbike-hailing services and feature upgrades to the customers in the country.

2️⃣ A US$10 billion game-streaming giant

A merger between China’s biggest game-streaming platforms, Huya and DouYu, is brewing, and Tencent, which owns significant shares in both firms, is all up for it. If the deal pushes through, we will be looking at an online giant with more than 300 million users and a combined market value of US$10 billion. China is the world’s largest gaming market by revenue, and its mobile gaming market in particular is huge.

But Tencent is not only into game-streaming; it is also expanding the presence of its streaming platform, WeTV, in Southeast Asia. Just two months ago, the titan acquired Iflix, a regional player with a sizable user base. And don’t forget about livestreaming ecommerce: The space is gaining traction, too.

3️⃣ TikTok’s estimated price: US$30 billion

Not one to slow down, Microsoft plans to finish its acquisition talks with TikTok in the US before September 15 – a deadline set by President Donald Trump – with a price tag of up to US$30 billion for the short-video app.

4️⃣ Facebook launches TikTok-like product

The company that wants to make it easier to transact using digital values of any form

The startup saving farmers’ crops