Financial Markets Weekly: Vanguard, Wellington test tokenised collateral; CIMB settles $343m tokenised sukuk; Coinbase launches tokenised US stocks.

CIMB has moved Malaysia’s tokenisation experiments beyond the digital representation of securities by using tokenised commercial bank deposits to settle MYR 1.38 billion ($343 million) of tokenised sukuk. The pilot coordinated the securities and payment legs on a single ledger, establishing the capability for atomic settlement while interoperability, secondary-market liquidity and the economics of operating digital infrastructure remain to be tested.

This year’s awards recognise CTBC Bank’s strengths across retail, wealth management, transaction banking and custody, E.SUN Bank’s combination of SME banking leadership and retail and sustainability innovation and Cathay United Bank’s advances in AI, cloud technology and digital services.

TAB Africa Weekly Brief: MTN's fintech transactions hit $330.5 billion, Afreximbank profit rises 30%, Equity Group expands regional lending further.

Retail Finance Weekly: GXBank expands lending via TNG eWallet, Zip Co posts record BNPL profit, Experian adds ChatGPT credit scores.

EastWest chief executive officer Jerry G. Ngo discusses why the bank intends to retain its consumer-centric identity while expanding into wealth, SME and corporate banking, how it is rebalancing its loan portfolio, and why the economics of AI require a selective approach in the Philippines.

OCBC NISP (OCBC) has strengthened its position in Indonesia’s affluent banking segment through a hybrid wealth management model that combines relationship manager-led advisory, high digital adoption and Beyond Banking benefits. The strategy is supported by strong growth of assets under management, deeper customer engagement and expanding penetration across mutual funds, bonds and bancassurance.

As digital commerce becomes faster, more embedded and increasingly automated, the strategic value of payments is shifting from transaction execution towards the intelligence, trust and infrastructure that sit beneath the payment itself.

Banks at Temenos Regional Forum Asia Pacific 2026 discussed how core modernisation, data and AI are changing technology priorities, while Vietnam's evolving fraud controls showed why faster digitalisation also requires stronger safeguards.

TAB Middle East Weekly Brief: Commercial International Bank earmarks $300 million for digital bank yomo following preliminary regulatory approval, while the Central Bank of Egypt establishes rules for electronic customer identification and verification through its Digital Financial Identity Platform.

Transaction Finance Weekly: Standard Chartered and HSBC complete the first live cross-border transaction using tokenised deposits on Swift’s blockchain-based ledger; Citi launches Custody+ with near-real-time custody capabilities for institutional clients.

Ngern Tid Lor Public Company Limited is redefining financial inclusion through its lending and insurance brokerage businesses, moving beyond access to provide continuity of support.

Wealth and Society's weekly roundup covers Singapore's new fund-manager incentives, record results at LGT and Lombard Odier, and asset-management and wealth-technology developments across the UK, Switzerland, Singapore, India and the Philippines.

Risk and Capital Weekly Brief: APRA expands system-risk stress testing, Santander completes Webster deal, Judo and AmBank flag elevated impairments, Absa and Heartland improve asset quality.

The Asian Banker Weekly Brief: US Treasury doubles long-dated buybacks as debt hits $40 trillion, Alibaba raises $10.3 billion, SoftBank plans AI bond, Australia tightens super rules.