RHB Banking Group is translating internal transformation into regional execution under PROGRESS27. Singapore anchors this shift as the group aligns platforms, commercial delivery and operational discipline across ASEAN.

With 18 million consumer banking clients across ASEAN and 11 million digitally active, CIMB is rethinking how it delivers value at every life stage. From payroll-linked onboarding to AI-enhanced advisory, the bank is blending digital scale with local relevance to deepen trust and grow sustainably under its Forward30 transformation agenda.

In the wake of Thailand’s approval of virtual bank licences, leading business, operation, risk management and technology heads from incumbent and emerging financial institutions met to discuss the challenges and opportunities in embedding agility, innovation and resilience into the next phase of banking transformation.

At CIMB’s inaugural ASEAN Media Trip, Group CEO Novan Amirudin and his fellow group banking leaders elaborated on how the bank’s Forward30 strategy, EPICC values and performance indicators are driving a unified, purpose-led approach to growth, digitalisation and execution across its regional network.

At Finance Thailand 2025, senior bankers, policymakers and technologists converged to address how artificial intelligence, digitalisation and regulatory innovation are reshaping the country's financial and economic future.

Chief executive officer for Hong Kong and Greater China & North Asia at Standard Chartered, Mary Huen reflects on the deeper impact of leadership beyond strategy and performance. She finds her greatest energy not in numbers or accolades, but in shaping the next generation of leaders and embedding a culture of aspiration, accountability and adaptability.

Service consumption is key to China's economic transformation, but several challenges must be addressed to enhance household consumption propensity and stimulate demand.

Amid a sluggish auto market, Kasikorn Leasing expanded its leadership in auto financing and strengthened its digital capabilities, supported by synergy with Kasikornbank. Its comprehensive value chain coverage and digital innovations have delivered resilient profitability, and strong credit quality.

Following the successful integration of Citibank’s consumer banking business, UOB Thailand is reshaping its retail banking strategy by focusing on cross-product growth, digital engagement and SME lifecycle support.

Kasikornbank’s Home to Cash has emerged as one of the secured loan innovations in Thailand, combining term loans and overdraft features into a single, flexible facility. Backed by strong digital integration, real-time approvals and a clear customer-centric philosophy, it has driven record portfolio growth, increased market share and established the bank as a top-tier player in the home equity loan space.

Vietnam Maritime Commercial Joint Stock Bank has embraced core and engagement banking modernisation, open-source DevOps, and AI readiness to drive digital agility and competitiveness in one of Southeast Asia’s fastest growing banking markets.

Barb Morgan, chief product and technology officer at Temenos, outlines how the company is aligning its technology roadmap with clients’ evolving expectations by building fewer but better products, investing in co-innovation and enabling faster time-to-value through AI, modularity and agile delivery.

The 2025 ASEAN Conference outlined a coordinated strategy to strengthen ASEAN’s economic independence by mobilising regional capital, aligning public and private institutions, and building long-term cross-border industrial capacity.

At The Asian Banker Future of Finance China Summit 2025, held in Beijing on 26 June, Sabino Fornies Martinez, minister counsellor and head of trade section at the Delegation of the European Union (EU) to China, called for a strategic rebalancing of global capital flows and greater financial cooperation between Europe and China.

In his keynote at the 2025 The Asian Banker Future of Finance China Summit, held on 26 June in Beijing, Robert Koopman— former Chief Economist of the World Trade Organization and Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer at American University— discussed the structural shifts reshaping global trade and finance.