Singapore’s fintech sector experienced a significant resurgence in the first half of 2025, attracting a remarkable US$1.04 billion across 90 deals. This impressive performance, as highlighted in KPMG’s Pulse of Fintech H1 2025 report, marks the highest investment level seen since the first half of 2023, when investments peaked at US$1.59 billion across 125 deals. The latest figures represent a substantial year-on-year increase of approximately 87 percent compared to H1 2024, and a 28 percent rise from the second half of 2024, signaling robust confidence in the city-state’s financial technology landscape.
Key Drivers of Growth
Investment activity during this period was primarily concentrated in three key areas: payments, cryptocurrency, and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning. Together, these verticals accounted for the majority of the deal value in Singapore, underscoring their strategic importance and growth potential. While payment deals were distributed across both early and late-stage funding rounds, the cryptocurrency and AI sectors predominantly saw early-stage investments, indicating a fertile ground for emerging innovations.
Globally, the fintech investment landscape presented a more subdued picture, with total investments reaching US$44.7 billion across 2,216 deals in H1 2025. This was a decline from US$54.2 billion across 2,376 deals recorded in H2 2024, making H1 2025 the softest six-month period for global fintech investment since H1 2020. Despite this global slowdown, Singapore’s ability to attract significant capital showcases its resilience and appeal as a regional fintech hub.
Anton Ruddenklau, a distinguished Partner and Head of Financial Services at KPMG in Singapore, and Global Head of Fintech and Innovation for Financial Services at KPMG International, offered insightful commentary on these trends. He stated, “The data for Singapore clearly indicates that the country is perceived as a strategic hub for fintech innovation. This perception is strongly supported by robust regulatory frameworks that have meticulously shaped a financial ecosystem renowned for its efficiency, resilience, and trustworthiness.” He further emphasized the importance of agile, tech-driven solutions in the current global economic climate, particularly as traditional financial flows face increasing disruption. “In a climate shaped by global trade tensions, the ability to enable decentralised, tech-driven, and non-traditional financial solutions will be critical. As traditional financial flows face disruption, the demand for agile, resilient infrastructure will see higher demand,” Ruddenklau added, highlighting a shift towards more adaptable financial mechanisms.
Payments Sector Leads the Way
Singapore’s payments sector emerged as a significant beneficiary of investor confidence, recording US$475 million in investment during H1 2025. This represents an almost eightfold increase from H2 2024, a testament to the sector’s dynamic growth and innovation. Mega-deals played a crucial role in this surge, with Airwallex’s US$301 million raise being a notable example that significantly contributed to positioning Singapore as a regional center for digital payments. Ruddenklau observed that “Singapore’s fintech firms are capitalising on the demand for agile, interoperable payment platforms that can navigate tariff-induced complexities.” The focus of the top three deals on cross-border payment solutions reflects a strong demand for infrastructure that facilitates real-time retail and commercial transactions seamlessly. Investors are increasingly prioritising platforms capable of addressing critical issues such as compliance, currency conversion efficiency, settlement speed, robust security measures, and fostering user trust in the digital payment ecosystem.
Digital Assets and Crypto See Strong Interest
The digital assets and currencies sector in Singapore also demonstrated robust activity, securing US$254.1 million in investment across 48 deals in H1 2025. This made it the vertical with the highest number of deals among all fintech categories. The two largest deals in this sector were notably secured by protocol provider Giants Planet and blockchain intelligence platform Coinseeker.co, each successfully raising US$30 million. This trend signifies a growing institutional demand for regulated financial services and infrastructure that not only supports scalability but also enhances interoperability within the burgeoning digital asset landscape. The sustained interest underscores the maturation of this sector and its increasing integration into mainstream financial services.
AI and Machine Learning Driving Innovation
The AI-powered fintech sector in Singapore also reached an unprecedented high, attracting US$234.5 million invested across 22 deals. These investments were primarily focused on developing business productivity tools and advanced financial software, indicating a strong market interest in AI solutions that can significantly enhance operational efficiency and accelerate digital transformation initiatives within the financial industry. There is immense potential for the development of more personalised financial services, tailored to individual customer needs, and an expanded application of AI in regulatory technology (regtech) to streamline compliance processes and improve risk management frameworks. This emphasis on AI reflects a broader industry trend towards leveraging advanced technologies for competitive advantage.
Global Fintech Trends and Outlook
While Singapore experienced a robust half-year, the global fintech market painted a different picture. H1 2025 represented the softest six-month period for fintech investment worldwide since H1 2020. Merger and acquisition (M&A) deal value saw a decline from US$26.7 billion in H2 2024 to US$19.9 billion. Similarly, private equity investment dropped from US$4.4 billion to US$1.4 billion. However, venture capital (VC) investment remained relatively stable, rising slightly from US$23 billion to US$23.4 billion. Regionally, EMEA was the only major area to witness investment growth, while the Americas attracted the most investment despite a decline. The ASPAC region, excluding Singapore’s strong performance, recorded the lowest investment levels at US$4.2 billion across 363 deals.
Despite the broader global challenges, specific sector trends showed positive momentum. Digital assets garnered US$8.3 billion in investment, already approaching the US$10.7 billion total for all of 2024. AI attracted US$7.2 billion, nearing the US$8.9 billion total from 2024. These figures indicate a strategic shift in investment focus. Ruddenklau reiterated this perspective, noting, “Much of the fintech investment globally we’ve seen so far in 2025 has been very strategic rather than broad-brush speculative investments. Firms focused on cost-cutting and divesting non-core assets. The increase in AI-focused fintech investment dovetails with that. Both investors and institutional users are keen on generative and agentic AI, and startups that improve efficiencies will command premium valuations. Fintech-focused AI is only going to get hotter heading into the back half of 2025.” This outlook suggests that strategic, efficiency-driven investments, particularly in AI, will continue to shape the fintech landscape moving forward. Singapore's strong performance in these key areas positions it well for continued growth and innovation in the global fintech arena.
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