Asian fintech investment soars to $5.4bn on China mega deals
Venture capital investment in Asian fintech last year totalled $5.4bn, up from $4.8bn last year, driven by Chinese mega deals, including $1.2bn raised by online lender Lufax. The vast majority of deals were struck in China, with $4.6bn being sourced in 46 deals, according to research firm CBInsights. “Chinese financial institutions are well aware of the competitive threat, and that is why many of them are investing in fintech companies,” said Albert Chan, the managing director for financial services, China at Accenture. The total excluded the $4.5bn private share placement of Alibaba unit Ant Financial.
China is home to six of the world's 22 venture capital-backed financial technology ‘unicorns’ -- start-ups valued from US$1 billion