WorldFirst, OCBC To Support SME Cross-Border Trade In Southeast Asia

KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 7 (Bernama) -- Ant International’s WorldFirst, an all-in-one digital cross-border payment and treasury account service for global businesses, has announced a partnership with OCBC to accelerate digital trade in Southeast Asia.

Under a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed last month, both companies committed to a strategic collaboration aimed at supporting WorldFirst’s base of 1.2 million small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) customers to conduct cross-border trade across the region and manage international payments in a simpler and more cost-effective manner.

This is timely as trade flows between Greater China and Southeast Asia continue to grow, deepening the need for a more resilient cross-border payment ecosystem for SMEs, according to WorldFirst in a statement.

“The deepened partnership with OCBC is a key step in strengthening WorldFirst’s regional financial network. By integrating OCBC’s market-leading presence in Southeast Asia, we can better support local SMEs with more efficient, accessible, and innovative financial services,” said Ant International Vice President and WorldFirst Chief Executive Officer, Clara Shi.

Meanwhile, OCBC Head of Global Transaction Banking, Melvyn Low said: “We are glad to strengthen our partnership with Ant International and WorldFirst. By combining our strengths, we aim to accelerate the growth of the region’s digital economy and contribute meaningfully to Southeast Asia’s broader economic development.”

OCBC currently supports the WorldFirst World Account in Singapore and Hong Kong. Under the MoU, this will be extended to Malaysia and Indonesia, which are OCBC’s core markets and key markets of interest to SMEs.

With WorldFirst’s World Account, SMEs can collect in 14 major currencies, including the Singapore dollar, United States dollar, Chinese yuan (offshore), Hong Kong dollar, euro, British pound, Australian dollar, Japanese yen, Swiss franc, Swedish krona, and Danish krone.

The World Account also supports payments in over 100 currencies across more than 210 countries and regions, along with integrated foreign exchange and other treasury services, providing a comprehensive cross-border payments and cash management solution.

SMEs that are OCBC customers can also enjoy fee-free transfers from their OCBC accounts into the World Account, making international payments more cost-efficient than before.

-- BERNAMA