It’s all about the payments landscape today as we speak to a global leader in real-time cross border payments. 

Founded in 2014, our guest for today is fintech player Nium, a company whose mission is to deliver the global payments of infrastructure of tomorrow, today. 

And there is an interesting story behind how the company came about. The firm was born out of frustration after its co-founder Prajit Nanu faced numerous challenges in sending money from India to Thailand to arrange a bachelor’s party for his friend. 

A Thai resort had refused to use his credit card and had insisted on a bank transfer of US$640. And while you might imagine the transfer to be a relatively seamless process, Nanu’s bank in India required an extensive list of documents to facilitate the transaction. 

But such issues may be a thing of the past. After all, Nium said its payout network supports 100 currencies and spans over 220 markets, 100 of which in real time. 

Funds can also be disbursed to accounts, wallets and cards and collected locally in 35 markets. The firm also has a growing card issuance business available in 40 countries. 

With its proposition and its extensive payment network, the San Francisco and Singapore headquartered firm achieved the unicorn status after a series D funding round in 2021. It is valued at US$1.4 billion as of September 2024. 

But why are we speaking to Nium you might ask? Well, Nium had in November 2024 opened its new headquarters in Singapore. Its Singapore headquarters will serve as the firm’s strategic hub for the Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa regions. 

So how far will the new headquarters position the firm for exponential growth? Did the firm also set up its headquarters here to be closer to its largest shareholder – Singapore’s Temasek?

Meanwhile, the firm also said then that it aims to go public within two years. Again – to what extent is the firm on track to do so?
 
On Under the Radar, Money Matters’ finance presenter Chua Tian Tian posed these questions to Anupam Pahuja, EVP and General Manager of Asia Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, Nium.

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