Fintech themes, including digital payments, online payments, and robo-advice boosted deals in the banking and payments sector in the second quarter of the year.
Asia-Pacific mergers and acquisition (M&A) activity in the banking and payments sector grew 167 percent quarter-on-quarter growth to reach S$44 billion across 152 deals in second quarter of 2021, according to data analytics and consulting firm GlobalData.
The first quarter of the year saw a total of 141 deals totalling S$17 billion, while the fourth quarter of 2020 saw a total of 174 deals worth S$13 billion.
Boom in Activity
«The COVID-19 pandemic has made remote banking vital for consumers. Banking and payments companies are engaging in M&A activity around fintech to add innovative services to sharpen their competitive edge,» Snigdha Parida, GlobalData senior analyst, said.
Major deals in the past quarter include a merger between Gojek and Tokopedia for $7.5 billion, a merger between Grab and Altimeter for $4.5 billion, a merger between Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Milton Corporation for $3 billion, and the acquisition of a 49 percent stake in VPBank Finance from Vietnam Prosperity by SMBC Consumer Finance for $1.4 billion.
