Tokyo (VNA) – Vietnamesefinancial technology startups are quickly catching up with Singapore inattracting Southeast Asian venture capital funding, according to the Japan-based Nikkei Asian Review.

Vietnam's share of regional venture capital funding devoted to fintechs jumped from just 0.4 percent in 2018 to 36 percent in the first nine months ofthe year, the business journal said in an article published earlierthis week. Singaporeattracted a 51-percent share, down from 53 percent last year.

"In Vietnam, what's actually leading is thepayments landscape," Nikkei AsianReview quoted Wong Wanyi, FinTech Leader at PwC Singapore, as saying.

Wanyi isalso co-author of a report on Southeast Asian fintech companiesproduced in conjunction with the UnitedOverseas Bank and the Singapore FinTech Association.

"For now I think what is taking up a lot of tractionin the developing economies will be very consumer-based," he said.

Driven by double-digit annual growth, digital paymentsare expected to become the payment method of choice for nearly half of alltransactions by 2025, surging past the 1 trillion USD mark as fintech companies tapthe 300 million adults across Southeast Asia who either don't have a bankaccount or lack proper access to credit, investment and insurance facilities, the journal said.

After attracting just 35million USD in venture capital funding in 2014, total investment in Southeast Asianfintechs has boomed over the past five years, reaching 679 million USD last year. Fintechfunding in the region has so far mounted to 1.14 billion USD in 2019. 

Singapore remains the region's dominant base forfintech, currently home to 45 percent of Southeast Asia's companies.

Vietnam's e-payment solutions provider VNPay came outon top in regional fintechin terms of ability to drawcapital, with 300 million USD in disclosed funding deals this year.

Insurance provider Singapore Life came in second with110.3 million USD in deals, followed by Vietnam'sMOMO Pay with 100 million USD.

The top 10 funded fintechs were located in eitherSingapore, Vietnam or Indonesia. Fintech companies set up bases in Vietnam because they want to tap thecountry’s large unbanked population, according to the journal./.