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GCG Asia’s Telegram: Latest News and Updates in Fintech

In this article GCG Asia Withdrawal looks at robo-advisories, a fintech service that’s becoming legitimately more and more popular in Asia, also known as Digital Investment Management services. 

Robo-advisories – also known as automated or digital investment services– utilise modern software and algorithms to create and manage your investment portfolio. Services vary from automatic recalibration to tax optimisation, and little or no human contact is required. However, services often have online consultants or contact with customer service available. 

Often traditional portfolio management services need significant balances; robo consultants generally require modest fees or no fees at all. Due to this and its low expenses, robo-advisories allow you to begin investing fast – in many cases within minutes.

Investing can be difficult. While there’s no shortage of information on the subject, many people find the process overwhelming. They fear they won’t have the knowledge or skills required to succeed. Robo-advisers can help. Simply put, they are cost-conscious individuals who dedicate their lives to helping others achieve financial freedom. As human beings have been investing in things for hundreds of years, many reasons exist as to why someone might want to seek out automated investment advice.  


GCG Asia Reviews Low Withdrawal Fees in Robo Advisories  

GCG Asia Withdrawal advisors explain that robo-advisors are significantly cheaper than a human financial consultant. Many businesses charge an annual administration charge of between 0.25% and 0.50%, however free solutions do exist as well. Like many other financial consultants, the costs of your assets are a percentage of the assets you have invested. The fee is usually paid monthly or quarterly from your account. Usually, you won’t pay a robo consultant transaction charge. You can pay a commission to purchase or sell investments both in a normal brokerage account when you rebalance your portfolio and when you deposit or make a withdrawal. GCG Asia Withdrawal experts tell us that these expenses are often waived by robo-advisors. 

For many investors, withdrawals are an issue to be contended with. There are many scam brokerages or investment accounts where investors are unable to withdraw their money or where the company may put up hurdles in front of you before you are able to successfully withdraw your money. GCG Asia views withdrawal issues should not be an issue with reputable robo-advisories. 

Robo Advisories is arguably the most exciting investment phenomenon in the Fintech revolution. It represents the rapid development of technology in recent decades that has led to the creation of instruments that are pluripotent and adaptable. Robotic investment advising, or Robo-advice for short, is a new field of investment advisory services that challenges traditional financial models by leveraging robotics and Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help provide investment guidance to clients in a low-cost, automated way. These robotic systems are becoming increasingly autonomous and capable. AI provides an incredible advantage when applied to decision-making by identifying complex equations and identifying the best investments opportunities for the user.

You might ask yourself; How Robo-advisers leverage Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to identify the best assets to rebalance for clients. This is accomplished by analysing the client’s historical trading behaviour and activity, as well as historical data, feeds collected from various proprietary sources. The resulting asset allocation plan is then automatically sent to the client’s Robo-Advisor platform where it undergoes final composition and Verification before being purchased. 

The best way to get started investing is to use a Robo advisor to learn about it. These advisors are designed to simplify your investing experience by collecting relevant information, putting your financial goals in perspective, and surfacing opportunities you might not have considered otherwise. 

The process is simple according to GCG Asia Withdrawal experts: You register with a Robo advisor, provide them with some basic information about you and your business, and determine what investments you’re most interested in making. Unlike the traditional investment process, which relies on memory and gut feelings, investing with a robot provides a level of data-driven advice that can save you time and money in the long run.

GCG Asia Withdrawal in Singapore’s Lee Cheong tells us that, to identify the best Robo advisor, consider the services they offer, their fees and how actively they engage with their clients. Some services may target specific population or age groups. Other features may be worth looking for as an average consumer. For example, Digital Assets enables you to purchase research reports online while downloaded onto your smartphone or tablet (they do not charge for research services you just pay when you use them). Though you may be able to find a cheaper advisor using traditional means that can save you money both now and, in the future, particularly where the cost of trading is concerned. While most markets are volatile and any investment entails some risk, using a Robo-advisor can potentially lead to higher returns.


How to Choose a Legit Robo-Advisor 

GCG Asia advises you to consider the following before signing up. 

  1. Google is your friend: check out whether the service is legitimate or not by seeing if it’s registered and licensed to operate where you are. 
  2. Minimum investment requirements. Is it prohibitive for you? What’s your budget like? How much do you have to put away? 
  3. Portfolio recommendation. When you join up for a robo-consultant, your first contact is generally always a survey to evaluate the risk tolerance, goals and preferences for your investment. On average, robotic consultants provide 5 to 10 portfolio options ranging from cautious to aggressive. The service algorithm will propose a portfolio that is based on your responses to these questions, but if you prefer a different alternative you should be able to veto that recommendation.You should be able to veto that recommendation if you’d prefer a different option.
  4. Investment selection. Robo-advisors are primarily constructing their portfolios from ETFs, which are investment baskets that replicate the behaviour of an index. In addition to the management cost of the robo consultant, you will pay the fees paid for the funds, called expense ratios. 
  5. Withdrawal issues: GCG Asia advises people to google to check whether your robo advisor has had any complaints with withdrawal of funds. 

We have noticed at GCG Asia Withdrawal that the arrival of Robo-advisers has raised hopes that soon investors will be able to offer personalized investment advice. This would bring an important step toward solving one of the major problems facing the investing public today: lack of access to competent investment advice. Although Robo-advisors have some promise in this area, GCG Asia Withdrawalraises suspicion that there are troubling limitations that need to be understood over the short term before Robo-advisors can make a meaningful impact on investors.

On the other hand, GCG Asia Withdrawal in Malaysia tells us one of the biggest stumbling blocks to getting started with Robo-advice is making sure you understand exactly what you’re getting into. While the technology exists to automate a large amount of traditional financial activity, the implementation is not yet complete. You will likely make mistakes when dealing with Robo-advisors due to your lack of knowledge in this area. Making these kinds of investment decisions requires a level of knowledge that simply isn’t available through a Robo-advisor. That is why GCG Asia Withdrawal recommends gaining more knowledge on the subject.

At GCG Asia Withdrawal we found that Integrating user preferences, behavioural indicators and other relevant information into financial products is challenging, as a result, investors preferred safe, predictable assets where they knew the management would act in their best interests. This led to an explosion in investment services offered by firms providing Robo-advisors.

Investor passivity has had its positives and negatives. On the one hand, it can enable more efficient and thoughtful investment decisions. On the other hand, it can lead to ineffective or misguided strategies that sacrifice short-term gains for longer-term goals.  

Moreover, GCG Asia Withdrawal experts find it crucial to have some knowledge in finance before investing in Robo-advisors or going to the stock market because anyone can open an investment account with a financial institution. What matters is whether the individual is prudent in his or her use of the funds. GCG Asia Withdrawal experts recommend assessing everything by asking several questions, including whether the saver has a track record for good investment habits, whether he or she can afford to lose money when investing, and whether the institution is reputable. The answers to these questions help the investor determine whether or not an institution is a good place for his or her money.

GCG Asia Withdrawal argues that the financial industry has been fighting a losing battle against technology for some time. As progress continues to be made in artificial intelligence and computing, we can begin to see intelligent financial services that properly educate consumers on the products they buy and how those products affect their wallets.

Robo-advisors bring powerful, personalized financial insights that are unparalleled in the banking industry. Unlike human financial advisors, these machines are designed to learn and adapt over time based on the insights of their clients. They offer quick decisions which are directly impactful on your financial wellbeing and wealth. However, GCG Asia Withdrawal warns that the rise of Robo advisors also brings several risks that need to be recognized by investors and policymakers to ensure the effectiveness and safety of this emerging technology.

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Forex Scams: GCG Asia’s Primer on Forex Scams and How to Suss Out Legit Brokers

Scams have been big news lately, especially in Malaysia. GCG Asia notes the frequency of latest news of scams, forex and otherwise have been increasing at an alarming rate with a new victim being reported almost daily. Forex trading is an increasingly popular form of investment profit-making, and so have forex trading scams grown in tandem.

With that in mind, GCG Asia Forex Scam experts are here to break down a few common Forex scams so you can avoid them.  

“Scamming is nothing more than a deceitful, dishonest act performed usually by a business or an individual. There are many ways to cheat both tourists and locals out of their hard-earned cash. Some offer you a service, or simply send a fake SMS in an attempt to acquire your personal information, as well as a promise for a certain amount of goods. In the end, none can fulfill what they have promised. They end up taking your money and running away,” says GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan. 

 

What is A Forex Scam: GCG Asia’s Forex Scam Primer 

If you think forex scams don’t concern you then you might think twice. GCG Asia Forex Scam experts tell us that forex scams are very common and quite a popular way to scam new investors or people new to trading forex.  

Before going into how you can avoid getting scammed, GCG Asia Forex Scam experts outline some common forex scams and how they work. 

 

Forex Scam 1: Robot scams 

We all want to earn money without having to do any labour. Nonetheless, there are many scammers that offer trading systems or robots to make the hard work of trading hard work easy for you by automation, as discovered by GCG Asia’s forex scam experts. 

One major draw of forex trading via a robot is that you may make money while the robot does all of the labour. It’s unknown if these techniques are valid since they have never been evaluated or confirmed by anybody outside of the business.

Regardless, GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan states that it is not a good idea to depend on a robot while making financial and investing decisions.

Computers cannot guarantee against mistakes. Because of this, even computers (and no one else) cannot possibly foresee global events or other financial cues that may influence the market. It may seem enticing to use automated trading tools, but platforms that guarantee earnings via forex trading robots are nearly always a fraud, says GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan.

And thus, while it may seem like a good idea to leave it to the robots, you should avoid doing so.

 

Forex Scam 2: Signal Seller Scams 

GCG Asia forex scam experts explain that signal sellers are those who demand a fee for advice on buying and selling a currency pair. In exchange, traders typically must pay a monthly fee to signal dealers. Additionally, people offering this service often claim that they will outperform the market and that they are very skilled traders.

GCG Asia forex scam experts explain that the scam is that these signal sellers take investors’ money, but investors get no information at all in exchange. And even if you do get data, a significant number is probably not sound advice. Due to the possibility of positive testimonials and glowing reviews of profits by so-called clients, identifying scam signal sellers may be tough. So be alert! 

 

Forex Scams 3: Multi-level Marketing (MLM)

Forex’s popularity has meant the proliferation of multi-level marketing (MLM) firms whose whole business model is centred on forex trading. It goes without saying that these firms already have a large degree of distrust. According to GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan, several famous forex MLMs charge a monthly fee in exchange for daily trading signals and forex educational materials. People who get more people to join are rewarded with higher levels of commissions. “Like any MLM, the goal of these companies is to recruit new members rather, and use the funds from these new investments to generate pay-outs. If new membership dries up, that’s when withdrawal issues will start happening,” said GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan. 

 

Forex Scam 4: Scam Brokers

GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan explains a forex broker is a company that offers you access to a trading facility in order to trade currencies. In order to trade in forex, a broker is usually required. Unfortunately, some brokers are dishonest and fraudulent, and will attempt to cheat or overcharge you. “Doing your homework on any broker is generally a good idea. While companies sometimes charge fees for trading in forex, these fees should be nominal, so do your homework for what’s a fair rate,” said GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan.

 

Forex Scam 5: Scam Forex Funds 

When you open an account with a forex fund, you may find forex funds that will pay out profits obtained on your initial investment and so, will provide you with a regular income. Unrealistic investments will provide higher-than-average annual returns that seem very attractive, which is a major red flag. GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan urges investors to select less risky and established index or mutual funds or asset trusts.

 

What Can You Do to Avoid a Forex Scam

Now that we know the types of forex scams, being alert to them can be much easier. GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan says there are a few things you can ask yourself to check whether a forex broker, platform or fund is legit. 

GCG Asia Forex Scam experts recommend a few key questions to ask yourself in your due diligence process before beginning forex trading: 

  1. Does the broker have a licence? 
  2. If the broker is licenced, how trustworthy is the regulator?
  3. Is the broker providing money for opening an account, or offering a share of profits?
  4. Is the broker offering a cash bonus for opening an account? 
  5. Does the company have a credible website with detailed information on financials, company history, contact information? 
  6. Is the broker offering automatic trades or signals with guaranteed profits?

GCG Asia Forex Scam expert Lucy Chan warns that if a broker offers money, returns or makes promises of profits of any kind, that should sound alarm bells. “Use common sense! That old saying is true, if it is too good to be true, it is!” says GCG Asia Forex Scam Expert Lucy Chan. Another frequent swindle is promoting lucky draws of lavish prizes like luxury cars that are given away to lucky investors.  

Now that you know more about this very common type of forex scam, hopefully now you are in a better position to avoid becoming a victim. 

If this is the type of content you value, visit GCG Asia’s website for the latest news and fintech updates!  

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GCG Asia Malaysia Breaks Down The Top 6 Trends in Digital Payments for 2021

According to the current Mastercard New Payments Index, the Covid-19 epidemic has increased excitement for various payment innovations in the Asia Pacific area. According to the GCG Asia Malaysia office research team, based on the latest survey, 94 percent of APAC customers stated use at least one different payment mechanism in the coming year, including biometrics, e-wallets, installment schedules, QR codes, crypto-currencies, among several others.

The Mastercard New Payments Index was administered through 18 markets around the world, covering Australia, India, and Thailand, according to the GCG Asia Malaysia office scholar squad. Compared to a year earlier, 84 percent of customers in the Asia Pacific now have more payment options. They also have an explanation. For example, 74 percent of respondents stated they would shop at small businesses more often if they had more payment choices, which is good news for startups. 

It is interesting to see what 2021 has in mind for us these days. So we will take a quick look at all of the digital payment patterns that will be large in 2021 in this article.

About Digital Payment

Customers in the Asia Pacific already have achieved global attention for their tolerance to emerging technology and creativity. However, according to GCG Asia’s latest report, these results confirm that this pattern is only going to continue as more online payment solutions increasingly become commonplace in this part of the globe.

Following the opinions of GCG Asia’s researcher, According to the index, the use of a variety of payment technologies is growing, with satisfaction with payment technology rising although cash use is gradually declining. In reality, according to the survey, 69 percent of Asian respondents expect to use cashless frequently in the coming year.

“People’s appetite for preference is reinforcing this behavior change, with 85 percent of Asian customers stating that they plan to make transactions when and how they choose. Therefore, businesses that can provide many ways to buy and pay would be well suited to fulfill the unique needs of the time, according to GCG Asia’s head analyst.

APAC payment patterns

The research also found some fascinating payment patterns around the country, according to GCG Asia Malaysia office analysts. For example, in the previous year, 84 percent of customers in APAC have increased their access to new modes of payment.

According to the index, if customer appetite grows, companies of all sizes would be expected to have several options to buy and pay. According to the GCG Asia Malaysia office team, 80 percent now choose to buy at shops with both an in-person and online platform, and 69 percent are more willing to shop at merchants that deliver the most up-to-date payment methods.

Furthermore, 60 percent of customers surveyed said they would stop merchants that do not recognize some electronic payment. In addition, a GCG Asia Malaysia office team said the research reveals that QR Codes are particularly common in Asia. For example, 63 percent of those who used QR codes for payment claimed they used them more often in the last year than in the previous year. Thailand and India each have 64 percent, which is more than the global average of 56 percent.

The emergence of cryptocurrency

According to the GCG Asia Malaysia office team, Mastercard’s index shows that customers are becoming more interested in investing in crypto assets for daily transactions. In Asia, 45% of those polled said they would start utilizing cryptocurrencies in the coming year, a significant increase from the 12% who said they had used it in the previous year and more robust than the world rate of 40%.

According to recent research, the GCG Asia Malaysia office expert group says, when it comes to Digital Payment Trends, centennials and millennials (41%) are more comfortable with cryptocurrencies than Gen X and boomers (26%). In addition, 71 percent of millennials say they are more open to using it than they were a year ago. In terms of geography, consumers in Thailand (46 percent) and India (44 percent) are more familiar with cryptocurrencies than consumers in Australia (17 percent ).

GCG Asia Malaysia office team’s latest report says consumers are becoming increasingly familiar with biometrics, according to the index. Around two-thirds of customers (64 percent) are enthusiastic about biometric identification approaches such as gait or walk tests and fingerprint authorization. In addition, according to the survey, 62 percent of people believe that using biometrics to validate a transaction is better than inserting a pin.

Authentication using biometrics

In the year 2021, biometric authentication will become increasingly common. The GCG Asia Malaysia office analysts shared their thoughts on Digital Payment Trends, stating that biometric identification is a means of verifying a person’s biological and structural characteristics. Fingerprint sensors, face detection, iris scanning, pulse tracking, and vein visualization are examples of these identification techniques.

With increased identity theft and fraud, biometric authentication may become a safe and stable solution for all digital payments in 2021—even the statistics point in the same direction. According to Biometric Update.com, 2.5 million payment cards (approximately) will release in 2021.

According to GCG Asia Malaysia office researchers, biometric authentication is a unique and valuable payment system since it combines and offers precision, performance, and protection in a single box. Furthermore, since it requires an individual’s specific features, biometric authentication is a highly safe process. This consideration also contributes to the development of consumer satisfaction and confidence.

From cards to coding

According to GCG Asia’s latest report on Digital Payment Trends, random combinations with similar card numbers marked bank accounts through random variations of identical digits on cards. However, EMV (Europay, Mastercard, Visa) technology has increasingly gained traction, providing consumers with a more automated and safer payment system.

“EMV tech is popular for utilizing transaction codes that change any time a transaction occurs. The usage of temporary codes improves bank account protection by leaps and bounds. This example demonstrates how codes will influence how we handle savings account processes,” the GCG Asia Malaysia offices researchers explains. Furthermore, cutting-edge financial services with more secure and streamlined means of money transfer and storage are destined to overshadow the future of plastic cards.

Payments for smart speakers

According to GCG Asia’s recent research, users of smart speakers may send voice recognition to the speaker and obtain a voice response in response. For example, the customer will use voice commands to get weather forecasts, traffic updates, orders from Zomato, and book an Uber taxi, among other items.

A slew of industry behemoths is manufacturing intelligent speakers. “Amazon was the first to release a smart speaker in 2014,” says the company. In 2016, and 2017, respectively, Google Home and Apple joined Amazon,” according to the GCG Asia Malaysia office research unit.

Since they were limited to just phone applications, the speakers originating from digital assistants were rudimentary in design. Smart speakers, on the other hand, have become more popular as home automation has grown.

Mobile wallets’ dominance

In 2019, about 2.1 billion consumers will use mobile wallets, according to a survey by GCG Asia. And this figure is only expected to rise in 2020. A mobile wallet solution is simply a portable program that attempts to imitate the functionality of a digital wallet. For example, you can transfer money to other clients, accept cash from other clients, and save money in your digital payment with the aid of a mobile wallet. Not just that, but a mobile wallet may be used to pay energy costs, purchase fares, receive incentives, and even more.

“According to Appventurez, the number of mobile wallet transactions will increase to 274.4 billion” (approx.). As a result, several major corporations, including Samsung, Google, and Apple, have begun to provide mobile wallets to facilitate this transaction. Those pockets, on the other hand, are all brand and business exclusive. Hence, more businesses will want to build their brand-specific wallet in the coming years,” says the GCG Asia Malaysia office team.

With the aid of a mobile wallet, businesses can quickly determine their customers’ use. In a mobile wallet, there are many parties involved. The research team from GCG Asia Malaysia office utilizes mobile wallet domination as an illustration where a single organization, such as Google, creates a mobile wallet. After that, a particular corporation makes gift passes and payment cards.
A large number of retailers often use the Google wallet. A mobile wallet, in general terms, is made up of several components that function together to provide simple, fast, and digital payment services.

Final Word

The GCG Asia Malaysia office analysts summarized their report on Digital Payment Trends 2021 by claiming that payment processes would shift from actual cash to online payment options. Most new patterns will emerge and vanish before the transformation is complete. These developments would have a significant impact on how we compensate in the future. “Some of the previously listed patterns will play a significant role in that phase.” However, only time can tell how it turns out,” says the GCG Asia Malaysia office analysts.

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Indonesia Fintech Industry Latest News by GCG Asia Indonesia News Team

GCG Asia Indonesia News believes that 2021 promises to be an exciting year for the Indonesian fintech sector. It has been progressing rapidly since 2016 and with the COVID-19 pandemic acting as a spur for many users’ adoption of these services.

Based on the newest draft about fintech licensing and regulation in Indonesia, it is reported that electronic payment and peer-to-peer (P2P) lending has grown to cover other vertical sectors such as innovative credit scoring, financial planning, aggregators, and project financing.

There’s also a positive trend in this fintech industry that can be seen in the growing number of licensed players in several fintech segments. According to a recent survey done by GCG Asia Indonesia News on Indonesia Fintech Association, the number of members increased from 30 in 2016 to 345 at the end of 2019, and then to 532 in the second quarter of 2020. The members represent 80% of licensed fintech startups in Indonesia, according to the survey done by GCG Asia Indonesia News.

“Fintech adoption has significantly increased, especially in the payment and lending sections. The pandemic accelerated fintech penetration in Indonesia, and it’s growing faster,” said Ismail Muhammad, the founder of Forex Malaysia and Indonesia, who spoke to GCG Asia Indonesia News.

Throughout 2020, total loan disbursements from fintech lenders experienced a 200% year-on-year growth, according to GCG Asia Indonesia News.

Next year will bring rigorous requirements for new fintech players, as Indonesia is set to establish new rules to strengthen the sector, following Singapore and Cambodia’s footsteps.

One of the founders of Capital Asia Investments, Karan, predicted that fintech borrowing would grow higher next year compared to 2020. He also shared other insights and projections for 2021 with GCG Asia Indonesia News.

Fintech regulations tightened

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“The regulations of fintech covering online lending are expected to be formalised by the end of this year, which will make it more difficult for new players to enter the industry,” said Karan, the founder of Capital Asia Investments, who spoke to GCG Asia Indonesia News.

He continues to say that peer-to-peer lending needs significant capital so that firms can sustain and grow their business. GCG Asia Indonesia News further examined and found out that to apply for a fintech license, new platforms will need at least IDR 15 billion (USD 1 million) in the capital instead of the current IDR 2.5 billion.

According to a global investment firm in Indonesia, P2P lending platforms have to show their statistics on their websites, such as the number of disbursements, number of borrowers, number of bad debts, etc., so that borrowers can select which platforms are good for them.

According to the newest draft, fintech operators must now have three directors and three commissioners, while the previous regulation only required one for each position. In comparison, many fintech organisations welcome the proposed changes, while others feel concerned about it.

GCG Asia Indonesia News interviewed several of them, and they all agreed that fintech regulations should use a “principles-based” approach, which is more suitable for new industries. Many of them also expressed that they want to see how things go first and hope that in the future, the regulators are flexible based on the market’s response.

Fewer fintech players but with a broader reach in Indonesia

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GCG Asia Indonesia News also found that fintech leaders will have to double up the loans’ percentage from the minimum amount of 20% to 45% for the next three years. Currently, the loans are at 35% of overall loans distributed, as fintech borrowing is still controlled by personal consumption loans.

Karan, who earlier spoke to GCG Asia Indonesia News, says, “even though the regulators encourage us to provide loans to the productive sectors, yet most fintech players are focused on the consumptive sector at the moment. So it might take some time to reach this target.”

According to last week’s GCG Asia Indonesia News interview with a regulator, we found out that the fintech regulator wants a more significant distribution of loans, especially in the rural areas of Indonesia. Based on their report, only 15% of loans were distributed outside of Java Island.

But in these regulations, P2P lending firms are required to lend at least 30% of their total loan disbursement to the rural areas for the next three years. “The pandemic has severely affected Indonesia’s rural areas, as the COVID-19 lockdown was implemented in villages and small towns. At the same time, small businesses in the rural areas are relatively stable as they are far from the epicentre of COVID-19. So we see this as a great opportunity for fintech lenders in general,” said Hatim, the founder and CEO of P2P lending platform Amakara, who informed GCG Asia Indonesia News.

According to a GCG Asia Indonesia News’ reporter, a direct effect of these new regulations could come from the high numbers of acquisitions and mergers among fintech lenders. After much reporting and investigating, we at GCG Asia Indonesia News, found out that many platforms have no choice but to merge with other players to survive the tight regulations.

Based on a study we published on GCG Asia Indonesia news, we estimated that the numbers of the lending platform would downsize from 160 to 80 next year.

E-money transactions to grow in 2021

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The COVID-19 has accelerated e-money adoption from 2020, a trend that we believe at GCG Asia Indonesia News will continue to grow next year in Indonesia.

With a significant increase in e-money adoption since last year and the pandemic being a key driver, we believe this will not stop. GCG Asia Indonesia News conducted a survey a few months ago to find out the results of this significant growth of e-money transactions. Because many are staying at home and making transactions online, this is no surprise that the numbers went up high.

According to the survey done by GCG Asia Indonesia News, total e-money transactions from January to September 2020 reached IDR 126.95 trillion (USD 8.9 billion), averaging IDR 15.86 trillion (USD 1.12 billion) per month, a 31% increase compared to last year.

The GCG Asia Indonesia News’ survey further shows that the growth of other fintech segments besides lending and payment in Indonesia is still at the early stage. Still, the country is seeing exciting developments from several subsectors.

The GCG Asia Indonesia News will conduct more surveys to understand the new clusters from aggregators, credit scoring and financial planning in the fintech industry as they have been growing significantly this year.

 

The 8 Most Common Scams in Malaysia and Singapore - GCG Asia

Scams Are Rising at A Rapid Rate. GCG Asia Investigates the Dangers of Scams and How to Protect Against It

Scamming is a form of a deceitful, dishonest act performed usually by a business or an individual. It is basically taking advantage of trusting individuals. There are plenty of different scamming techniques out there, which can be anything from promising a certain amount of goods or service that they never supply, or simply sending a fake SMS in an attempt to acquire your personal information. Those SMSes are mass-marketed, meaning one scammer sends it to several numbers in different countries.

More than half of the scams happening worldwide involve encouraging individuals to invest heavy sums and promising high returns without any financial risk. With many scams being online-based scams, aided by modern technology, they are constantly evolving! GCG Asia Latest News explains.

“Due to the current pandemic, a whole new set of scams related to Covid-19 are all over the Internet. Unfortunately, many have already fallen for it. Due to the variety and number of scams out there, it’s usually difficult to trace the scammer, most of them are quite experienced in hiding their tracks.” says GCG Asia CEO and Founder Eddy Teow. 

Scammers constantly invent new convincing and seemingly legitimate reasons to ask for pre-payments such as to cover the processing fees or taxes.

 

In order to avoid scams, you need to familiarize yourself with the most common repetitive types of scams. The GCG Asia Scam Finder development team sheds the light on competition scams.  Competition scams usually involve a variety of text messages or emails from an overseas lottery company. The content of the message usually claims you’ve won a certain prize, and they are simply waiting for you to provide them with your bank information so they can transfer the award money. This type of scam may be considered outdated, but it still happens.

Hacking is usually done by a scammer through phishing emails. Those emails trick you into giving them access to your personal device. The email attachment usually includes a link that is very tempting to view. Once you click the link a malicious software will be installed giving the hacker remote access to the content of your device. From there they can scan your device for personal information such as your online bank login details. So, avoid opening emails from unknown senders, and also having protective software such as the upcoming GCG Asia Scam Finder can help you protect your data. 

Being aware of the types of scam that are affecting every day Malaysians and Singaporeans.

GCG Asia Malaysia and Singapore are most concerned to read the increasing reports of Malaysians being among the most vulnerable to scams. Every Malaysian has encountered a type of scam in the past or knows someone that has been scammed. With the Covid-19 pandemic’s Movement Control Order in Malaysia, scammers moved their operations to the internet. Scams have reportedly increased 82.5% in Malaysia in less than one year during Covid-19 times. According to local officials between January 2020 to September 2020, 4,764 Macau scams have occurred incurring losses of more than RM200 million. 

Here are the most common types of scam that are constantly happening in Malaysia and Singapore according to GCG Asia:

  1.     PPE (personal protective equipment) fraud

  GCG Asia analyst Ben Foo warns us that unfortunately unscrupulous people are taking advantage of the current state of the world. “Covid-19 has affected every household and yet scammers find a way to make it worse. There have been hundreds of reported cases involving face mask scams where the purchaser never receives any face masks some including RM600,000 worth of masks. Other fraudsters promoted drugs that falsely claim to heal the coronavirus infection,” he said. 

 

  1.     Illegal money lending activities

There have been many reported cases of illegal lending activities of companies posing under fake licenses as legitimate money lenders. They would ask for ‘down payments’, ‘deposits’ and run away with your money. A great deal of these numbers can be found at the GCG Asia Scam finder.

 

  1.     Investment scams

Getting a high return for your cash, particularly in a short time can be alluring that makes people rush into getting scammed. Con artists utilize these strategies to exploit simple Malaysians who need to make fast money in a short amount of time without working hard for it. Investment scams also include a Mecca Investment that is directly targeted towards Malaysian Muslims. The scammer tempts the individual to invest in the holy city of Mecca in exchange for profit that can go up to 360%.

 

  1.     Macau scams 

According to GCG Latest News, a Macau scam involves a person that gets contacted by an individual acting as a government official or a bank accusing the person of being involved with criminal activities. The scammers then inform the individual that they are under suspicion and need to be investigated for criminal offences such as tax evasion or drug trafficking. Using a psychological strategy that is utilized with the goal of putting the person into a panic who will then promptly move cash into the fraudsters’ account to “settle” or “solve” the bogus investigation right away.

 

  1.     Phone Scams

  Who among us has not received a shady phone call from a strange number that just left our eyebrows raised? As you may have expected, these phone calls are most probably scammers trying to get to you. It is best that you never answer these overseas phone calls unless you confirm it is a legitimate number. One way you can prevent getting scammed by these calls is by getting the upcoming GCG Asia Scam Finder that uses algorithms to detect websites and phone numbers that will help you spot the scam before it is too late.

 

  1.     Love scams  

Occurring commonly on social dating platforms such as Tinder, these scams mostly target older lonely women. The scammer usually creates a different persona that appeals to the ladies, usually impersonating a Caucasian man that stays in contact with her for a prolonged period of time thus gaining her trust and heart. After spending many hours in contact, the scammer tells the victim to transfer money to help him out with legal troubles. Through that process, the victim gets defrauded through a series of steps from made-up websites to fake officials that are in on the act.

 

  1.     Cryptocurrency scams

Cryptocurrency tricks are a mainstream way for con artists to fool individuals into sending cash.  Most crypto tricks can show up as messages attempting to falsely incriminate somebody, or as false speculative activities and business returns. Scammers try their absolute best to trick you into sending cash or to make an instalment with Bitcoin or another kind of cryptographic money. When you do, your cash is gone, and there is no real way to get it back. Although they may promise you that there is a high return on investment but you will never see a return on the investment. “Unfortunately these kinds of schemes are on the rise in many Asian countries including Malaysia and Singapore,” GCG CEO and Founder Eddy Teow tells us.

 

  1. Online shopping scams 

Another common form of scam involves a scammer who will usually display a product promoting it with promises of great quality, including fake reviews created to push sales. However, the product received is usually faulty or of low quality, and some may not even deliver anything. GCG Asia Malaysia and Singapore warn that scammers might pretend to sell a product or service just in order to obtain your credit card details. You can simply avoid falling into this by shopping only at reputable verified sites. 

Lastly, there are plenty of charity scams as well. Scammers usually exploit recent crises or natural disasters that are all over the news to cash in some quick money. They will create a fake charity website so that people can donate a certain sum online. However, the money won’t reach any of those who need help. Make sure if you’re donating any money to call in and double-check that the charity organization exists. Medical scams are also common, promising a newly discovered cure that promises quick recovery, they promote the treatments using fabricated reviews from individuals who have been cured. If a cure is being advertised with lots of reviews and it seems too good to be true, chances are it’s another common scam! 

Luckily one of the solutions to combat scams is GCG Asia upcoming Scam Finder, which includes an algorithmic study of scammers information such as numbers, names, websites, images, being collected into a database which experts at the GCG Asia Scam Finder team hope to help organizations as well as individuals in finding and reporting scams.

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GCG Asia Scam Finder Developers Shed Some Light on Their Upcoming New Product via An Online Pre-Launch Event Organized by GCG Asia Malaysia and GCG Asia Singapore

Back in 2018, the concept behind Scam Finder was introduced by a team of independent developers in Malaysia and Singapore. The concept was pretty straightforward: a computer algorithm designed to detect false financial investment websites that are heavily present online. These websites advertise heavily through a large number of false marketing campaigns led by professional scammers hiding behind false promises of financial gains and investment returns.

GCG Asia Scam Finder’s aim is to combat such unethical behaviour by protecting average consumers, as well as fintech enthusiasts and entrepreneurs from falling prey to such scams and fraudulent behaviours. This allows for a safer browsing experience for a large number of internet users in Asia and around the world.

Scam Finder is now a concept slowly coming to life. Hence, a timely pre-launch event was organized by GCG Asia Malaysia and Singapore to provide us with better insights into Scam Finder’s potential and influence on online safe browsing. The event was held online through a zoom session in which participants were invited through email. The participants of the event consisted of GCG Asia contributors, Scam Finder investors as well as Scam Finder’s development team. Most importantly, in attendance was Dr. Lee Ong, head of development for GCG Asia Scam Finder and Dr. Eddy Teow, CEO of GCG Asia: Global ComTech Gossip.

GCG Asia Scam Finder Speech by Dr. Eddy Teow, CEO of GCG Asia Global ComTech Gossip

The event began with a speech from Dr. Eddy Teow, in which he stressed the importance of combating financial fraud and pledged his full support to GCG Asia Scam Finder. Dr. Eddy Teow expressed his confidence in the project, and said he was hopeful that the product would be launching very soon as he felt that such a powerful tool should have existed a long time ago. “I strongly believe in Scam Finder’s ability to ensure safe browsing for all internet users to protect themselves from internet scammers who are toxic to our passionate fintech community,” he expressed during his opening speech. He went on to add: “My hope is to eliminate all chances for scammers to commit fraudulent behaviour on the internet or at the very least, to limit their toxic activities.” Dr. Eddy Teow openly admitted that he had once been a victim of such online scams early in his career while in Cambodia, and expressed his willingness to help fund the project further if necessary.

After his speech, a few members of the development team shared some interesting insights on how the concept of GCG Asia Scam Finder was developed. It all started with a group of entrepreneurs with backgrounds in software development in Singapore. One of the members of the development team was informed by his friend that he had been a victim of an online investment firm. This incident prompted the developer to bring this topic to Dr. Lee Ong, who at the time was a freelance Computational Algorithm Engineer and university professor. Dr. Ong took a strong interest in this incident and managed to gather his entrepreneur friends and a few experts in software engineering to conduct more research into online fraudulent financial websites.

GCG Asia Scam Finder team in Singapore office

The team in Singapore would eventually realize that scam websites contain a familiar pattern and rely heavily on keywords and search engine optimization which could be traced back to online social media bots created for the purpose of ranking themselves on google. They had also noticed that such websites were not legally registered or licensed to operate under any financial governing organization or legal framework. The team then realized how simple it would be if some sort of software can be developed to verify such behaviour and red flag such websites based on computational background checks operated solely by a precisely written algorithm.

After realizing this opportunity, the team grew to include a large number of software engineers, SEO experts, algorithm experts and web developers from Malaysia and Singapore. The concept was in its early stages however, as development was stalled due to limited resources and funding. It was then that Dr. Lee Ong brought the idea to a number of potentially interested parties, one of whom was GCG Asia founder Dr. Eddy Teow who immediately realized Scam Finder’s potential and agreed to fund it.

The icing on the cake is its dynamic algorithms, which simply means that the computational logical method of doing background checks is able to grow and learn by itself without any sort of human intervention. This is why deep learning technology was embedded into this algorithm for the hope of improving the basic functions of the algorithm and to combat any sort of attempts by scammers to combat the algorithm.

Dr. Koay Chee Ming of GCG Asia Singapore, one of the developers tasked with developing the deep learning algorithm, stated the following: “Deep learning is inspired by the structure and functionality of such algorithms. Deep learning is basically large neural networks that form a brain that functions on its own and most importantly learns from its mistakes. This technology is quite recent and is currently being used in the IT industry today as it is somewhat the future of Artificial Intelligence.” Dr. Koay seemed confident in the algorithm’s self-learning capabilities and is hopeful that such capabilities will drastically improve the functionality of Scam Finder.

GCG Asia Scam Finder Artificial Intelligence prototype - GCG Asia Malaysia and Singapore

Self-learning capabilities are considered to be the only way for Artificial Intelligence to improve and become less dependent on human intervention. The technology is currently being used in many indie projects and is also used by major corporations, most notably Tesla with its smart self-driving vehicles that are purely based on its self-learning software.

During the event, a question was raised by one of the participants on whether Scam Finder would organize its own marketing materials to promote GCG Asia Scam Finder. The developers asserted that such actions would be taken not only to promote Scam Finder but to give assurance to all that the product is being developed for the sole purpose of combating financial fraud and that it would make no attempt to market it falsely. The developers had also expressed the potential of starting a marketing campaign against online financial frauds on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook in order to raise awareness on the importance of safe browsing and combatting scammers.

Perhaps the most important question for GCG Asia Scam Finder team: when will Scam Finder actually launch? “Well, the only answer we have for now is very soon,” Dr Ong said. They mentioned that their concern was of launching Scam Finder too early without adequate trial runs, as is necessary to ensure that the algorithm is running properly with no bugs. However, the development team revealed that the results of the early trials are very promising. They are confident that the trial runs will be successful in order to launch the product very soon.

The event ended with a closing speech from Dr. Lee Ong, where he expressed his great appreciation to everyone who had supported the concept. He had also expressed his gratitude to the development team in which he mentioned how hard they have been working on this project especially during the pandemic when development paused for a while. Dr. Lee Ong said “I am extremely grateful and proud of the team at GCG Asia Scam Finder who worked tirelessly to deliver deadlines and develop a product that would benefit internet users for the long term.”

Dr. Eddy Teow, CEO of GCG Asia, concluded the event by reiterating his personal excitement about the potential of this new product. “I can’t wait to unveil this product. I anticipate that this will be well received by the public and I firmly believe that this ties into our larger goal of delivering products that serve a greater purpose. I see this as a form of public service as this will really help people to protect themselves, their organisations and their companies from scammers and fraudsters,” he said.

GCG Asia Scam Finder is a tool that could greatly enhance safe browsing and protect people’s finances from scammers. By modelling itself as a guardian for all internet users, many aspects of GCG Asia Scam Finder are exciting, such as its ability to self learn and become more efficient as it continues to operate which would allow it to combat all attempts for scammers to bypass safety nets. It’s definitely a promising tool for the future of safe browsing.

The team at Global ComTech Gossip as well as GCG Asia founder Dr. Eddy Teow are hopeful that Scam Finder will become a successful product and change the way in which we surf the internet. We will continue coverage of GCG Asia Scam Finder latest news to ensure that you are up to date with the latest development of GCG Asia Scam Finder.