Ant Group supports Proxtera’s vision for global MSME ecosystem

(From left) Jia Hang (Ant Group regional general manager for Southeast Asia), Lew Chuen Hong (IMDA CEO), Saurav Bhattacharyya (Proxtera CEO), and Leong Sing Chiong (MAS deputy managing director for markets and development) / Photo credit: Proxtera

Proxtera closed its seed round of funding with investments from Ant Group, CerraCap Ventures, and EDBI.

Founded in 2020, Proxtera implements the Business sans Borders initiative led by Monetary Authority of Singapore and Infocomm Media Development Authority. The company seeks to create a global ecosystem for MSMEs using trusted credentials and enable cross-border B2B trade through financing and fulfillment services.

The firm has launched programs such as the SME Financial Empowerment program and the Emerging Markets Currency Exchange. The former aims to improve SME owners’ digital financial literacy, while the latter helps businesses find competitive foreign exchange rates for illiquid currencies.

Proxtera will use the fresh funds to further develop its services, as well as release more digital products to cover the entire B2B trade journey.

“We look forward to working together and bridging market access and creating more opportunities for MSMEs through digitalization of trade and financing,” said Jia Hang, Ant Group regional general manager for Southeast Asia.

Ant Group, which started as Alipay, is a leading open internet platform that uses tech to support its partners in providing diverse financial offerings.

See also: Behind Ant Group’s revived SEA ambitions

Alipay+, Ant Group’s cross-border e-payments solution, also recently expanded to Australia, adding roughly 8,000 Australian retailers to its network.