The Afternoon Update with Lynlee Foo

Mortgage experts predict a slowdown in UK property price growth in 2025 due to rising mortgage rates and higher stamp duty. How will the new Labour government's policies  reshape the landscape for buyers and investors alike? What will the changes mean for overseas investors? London-based Marc von Grundherr, Director at international real estate agency Benham & Reeves, shares his insights into the effect of the new housing policies on the property landscape in the UK. 

According to Cisco's 2024 AI Readiness Index, only 13% of companies in Singapore are fully prepared to harness AI's transformative potential, a figure unchanged from last year. The report by the global leader in networking and security, highlights the ongoing challenges businesses face in adopting AI technologies effectively.  From an IT infrastructure perspective, what are the key focus areas that can break down barriers to AI adoption? Raymond Janse van Rensburg,VP, Specialists and Solutions Engineering, APJC, Cisco shares about the challenges in AI deployment and the importance of a balanced approach in defining a robust AI strategy to fully leverage the potential of AI. 

Fintech is transforming the financial services industry at an unprecedented pace, reshaping how we pay, borrow, and manage money. Embedded finance—integrating financial services into everyday platforms like Superapps—is revolutionising the customer experience, making financial transactions seamless. What are the opportunities businesses can unlock from this trend, and what's in store for 2025? Lucy Liu, President and Co-founder of payments and financial platform Airwallex, shares about the Singapore-based firm's global growth and initiatives includingYield, an asset management service, and why embedded finance is an important part of the future of fintech.

The rise of AI is revolutionising customer service, particularly in call centers, where it is streamlining operations and enhancing personalisation. From reducing wait times to offering real-time insights, AI is reshaping how businesses engage and retain customers. But how do businesses balance automation with the human touch to remain competitive and keep their customers engaged? Li Guanghai, CEO of Helport, the first Singapore-based AI company to be listed on NASDAQ, gives insights into the evolving role of AI, the benefits and challenges of AI-driven call centers and the future of AI in customer service. Li also shares of a new initiative by Helport - a platform that allows third-party developers to build applications on top of its technologies.

Holiday season has kicked into full swing as we wind down the year. While Singaporeans are known for our love of international vacations and significant travel spending, many travellers still fall into common money traps; from paying excessive exchange rates at airports to selecting the wrong currency conversion options abroad.  Mike Truong, Product Director of APAC Regional Expansion at Wise, shares how you can make your money work harder this holiday season, including essential tips to avoid costly mistakes, make smarter payment choices, and manage your money effectively on your travels.

Industrialisation and rapid urbanisation across Asia-Pacific, particularly in countries like China and India, are fuelling a surge in demand for elevators and escalators in malls, shopping complexes, and residential buildings. As the market evolves, key innovations such as enhanced safety mechanisms, predictive maintenance, and energy-efficient designs are becoming industry standards. Edward Loy, Managing Director for Southeast Asia at KONE, shares some of the trends that will reshape the elevator and escalator market into the future. He discusses the concept of people flow and the way it improves productivity and profitability, and how KONE is leveraging technology to meet the growing urban infrastructure demands across the region.

Digital forgeries surged by 244% in 2024, with deepfake attacks occurring every five minutes, according to a new report by Entrust, a global leader in identity-centric security solutions. The report which shows an increasing level of sophistication when it comes to cybercriminal methods found that the financial sector was the hardest hit. What can organisations do to combat challenges in AI-driven fraud? Simon Horswell, Senior Fraud Specialist at Entrust sheds light on the latest advancements in the digital identity solutions space, and why a layered approach to security with multiple defences might be the best way to guard against digital forgeries.

Market intelligence shows that the Asia-Pacific media and entertainment market, valued at $1.28 trillion in 2024 and projected to reach $1.62 trillion by 2029, is a key region for global content consumption and production. Responding to industry demand, UK-based content financing firm Goldfinch is set to open its Singapore office, marking its significant expansion into Asia. Justin Deimen, Managing Partner at Goldfinch Asia and Executive Director of the Intercultural Theatre Institute, shares more about successful financing models in the West and how Goldfinch Asia’s innovative credit-driven funding model will spur more opportunities for film and TV projects in this region. 

After years of subdued performance, Malaysia’s stock market is experiencing a resurgence, with the KLCI index climbing nearly 10% over the past year, fuelled by strong economic growth and foreign investment from U.S. tech giants. In response to this momentum, CGS International Securities recently launched UP, the first trading platform in the region that allows users to invest in fractional shares of stocks listed on Bursa Malaysia. Regulated under Singapore rules, the platform is targeted at new and young investors, and is available via an app that can be downloaded on Google Play and Apple’s app store. Elgin Ting, Group Head of Strategic Partnerships at CGS International, shares his views on Malaysia’s economic upswing, the growing appeal of Bursa Malaysia, and more about the new platform that is designed to democratise access to capital markets.

Coinbase, one of the largest centralised crypto exchanges globally, is shaping the future of blockchain innovation. It is making efforts to create best-in-class user experiences that it hopes will do away with the complexities associated with crypto. Base, its Layer 2 blockchain solution for the Ethereum network is designed to offer faster, cheaper and more secure transactions. In an exclusive interview with Money FM 89.3, Jesse Pollak, creator of Base and Head of Protocols at Coinbase, shares his insights on the benefits of on-chain payments, Coinbase’s efforts to drive this transformation, and the next big thing in crypto. He also tells us why he thinks Singapore is leading the way in the digital asset space.