Slice launched AI Personal CFO; Hana Financial acquired 6.6% of Dunamu for $668M | TWIF Asia - 16th May, 2026

LIC Housing Finance reported ₹1,497cr ($156M) Q4 FY26 net profit, up 9.4% YoY.

Health insurance grew 15.4% to ₹1.4 lakh crore ($14.5bn) in FY26, expanding market share to 40.8% from 38.6%.

MobiKwik reported ₹289cr ($30M) revenue in Q4 FY26, and ₹4.4cr ($460K) profit from ₹56cr ($5.8M) loss YoY.

Niva Bupa Health Insurance reported ₹158cr ($16.5M) net profit in Q4 FY26, up 89.3% YoY, driven by lower operating costs and 35% retail health premium growth.

Public Sector Banks (PSBs) achieved cumulative net profit of ₹1.98 lakh crore ($21.8bn) in FY26, growing 11.1% YoY.

Niyogin Fintech, a small business lending company, grew revenue to ₹72cr ($7.5M) in Q4 FY26, while net profit was ₹1.11cr ($115K).

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) piloted e-rupee welfare payments across ~10 experiments to boost Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) adoption, targeting ₹65,000cr ($6.8bn) welfare system.

CMS Info Systems secured INR 400cr (USD 44M) mandate from HDFC Bank to manage 6,000 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) over five years.

Scripbox, a mutual fund distribution startup, is raising ₹170cr ($17.8M) through equity and debt to acquire a mutual fund distribution business and prepare for Initial Public Offering (IPO).

Slice, consumer lending startup and bank, launched an AI-powered personal CFO tool for wealth management within its banking app.

FinBox, a credit infrastructure startup, launched Atlas, an AI credit issuing infrastructure to reduce loan turnaround times from 21 days to 1 day.

WealthUpp, an investments and savings startup, launched its AI-driven mutual fund investment app.

Pine Labs partnered with GCash to expand merchant operations across the Philippines, integrating installment payments and digital payment methods.

ICICI Bank partnered with Visa to launch India's first USD debit card from GIFT City for NRI customers, offering zero forex markup.

PB Fintech received Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) approval for debt segment stock broking on National Stock Exchange (NSE).

Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) considered permitting Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) to trade bullion derivatives via rollover mechanism, avoiding physical settlement.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and European Central Bank (ECB) signed updated Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) enhancing information exchange and central banking collaboration.

Even Healthcare received Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) approval to launch retail health insurance product distribution.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) proposed new Prepaid Payment Instruments (PPIs) framework imposing ₹2 lakh ($2,100) monthly debit caps and ₹25,000 ($260) peer-to-peer transfer limits.

Reserve Bank of India (RBI) cancelled the Certificate of Registration (CoR) of 150 Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs).

Sindhuja Microcredit, a micro finance company, raised ₹48cr ($5M).

Nivasa Finance, a home loan distribution startup, raised INR 25cr (USD 2.6M).

Raise Financial Services, Holding company of Dhan, a stock broking company, acquired GreenLife Insurance Broking, an insurance broker, and invested $15M (₹143cr) to expand into insurance distribution.

Shivalik Small Finance Bank acquired ManiBhavnam Home Finance for ₹109cr ($11.4M) to expand into affordable housing portfolio.

Rain, a regulated crypto-asset startup in GCC region, received In-Principle Approval (IPA) from the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) in Dubai.

Ajaib, an Indonesian stock broking startup, grew revenue 152% YoY in 2025.

Malaysian e-wallet ownership declined to 1.5 wallets per user in 2025 from 1.8 in 2024, as consumers narrowed preferences and shifted towards online bank transfers.

Bitget launched Scan to Pay feature enabling USDT spending at offline merchants via QR codes in Southeast Asia and Latin America.

TNG Digital, a Malaysian payments company, partnered with CIMB Bank to launch BizCash, a digital business financing platform for micro and small businesses.

OCBC Bank partnered with Australian High Commission to expand Southeast Asia-Australia trade, targeting to double flows by 2030.

Transfi, a Dubai based B2B2C payment infrastructure startup, launched BizPays, an AI conversational payments integration enabling businesses to process payments through natural speech.

Nepal Rastra Bank and Central Bank of Sri Lanka launched QR payment interoperability enabling Nepali travellers to make payments at 400,000+ LankaQR merchants.

ABHI, a Pakistani earned wage access startup, partnered with Saudi Arabia's TRAY to launch Earned Wage Access (EWA) services in Saudi Arabia's food and beverage sector.

Reap, a Hong Kong stablecoin-enabled payment startup, partnered with TerraPay, a UK based cross border payments company, to expand cross-border payouts via local payment rails across multiple regions.

BTSE Bhutan obtained in-principle approval from Gelephu Financial Services Office for digital asset trading and custody services license.

Stitch, a Saudi Arabian financial infrastructure startup, raised $25M.

SoBanHang, a Vietnamese merchant management platform, raised $3.8M.

National Australia Bank (NAB) acquired Banked, a global payments platform company, to improve its account-to-account payments capability.

Hana Financial, a major South Korean financial holding company, acquired 6.55% stake in Dunamu, operator of Upbit, the country's largest cryptocurrency exchange, for $669M.