The internet has changed the way most of us live. Through internet related technological innovations such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and e-commerce, a lot of our day to day tasks have been made easier. Such innovations could also boost many industries, making it easier for those who engage in certain types of business to carry out their tasks.The mushrooming of e-wallets in Asia – particularly Southeast Asia – could be useful for the tourism industry.

The Fourth Industrial Revolution has seen many sweeping changes in the way we interact with one another. This interaction is not limited to human-to-human relationships but is extended to the way we deal with finances; with the idea of digitalising purchases and transactions now a reality. Mobile wallets are part of this reality, with users able to carry out purchases through cashless means, and as the term suggests, with the use of a smartphone.

Singapore is putting together the final few pieces of its e-payment infrastructure jigsaw puzzle with the introduction of the Singapore Quick Response (SGQR) code. As SGQR is rolled out over the next six months, store merchants will only need to display one single QR code that will work with all the payment vendors they have signed up with. Gone will be the days when they need to display a different code for each vendor.Cashless transactions are gaining pace in the region.

The internet has changed the way most of us live. Through internet related technological innovations such as the Internet of Things (IoT), big data and e-commerce, a lot of our day to day tasks have been made easier. Such innovations could also boost industries, making it easier for those who engage in certain types of business to carry out their tasks. The mushrooming of e-wallets in Asia – particularly Southeast Asia – could be useful for the tourism industry.

The competition between ride-hailing apps in the region could slowly become a one horse-race as the tech world has been rocked with rumours of Uber exiting the region. The speculation began after Japan’s SoftBank made a US$1.25 billion investment in Uber that effectively made them the company’s largest shareholder.

The current push towards electronic payments in Southeast Asia also increases the need for government regulation and consolidated systems to facilitate the smoothness and security of transactions.The Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) recent introduction of the Payments Council in February 2018 is one such example. The Payments Council is being set up with the aim of developing strategies that would drive increased adoption of e-payments.

With a growing internet user base and a digital economy that is said to be worth US$50 billion last year alone by Temasek and Google, it is no wonder digital wallets or e-wallets are taking off in the region. Digital wallets allow users to keep their credit cards and bank accounts electronically safe. An e-wallets allows you to make payments on e-commerce websites and also in real-life through QR codes or near field communication (NFC).

Go-Jek, Indonesia’s biggest ride-hailing service, agreed to acquire three local financial-technology companies, underscoring its ambition to become the dominant player in the country’s nascent digital-payments industry.The deals bring together Kartuku, Indonesia’s largest offline payments-processing company; Midtrans, the nation’s top online-payment gateway; and Mapan, a local community-based saving and lending network, Go-Jek said in a statement Friday.Collectively, Go-Jek and the three comp