Southeast Asia Fintechs Harness AI to Widen Financial Access

About 350 million people, or roughly half of Southeast Asia’s population, remain unbanked, often because they lack formal income records, collateral or established credit histories. Fintech companies including Sea Group’s Monee, Singapore-based Trusting Social and global lender Skyro are using artificial intelligence and alternative data to assess those borrowers. The approach could deepen financial inclusion, but uneven cloud capacity, data systems and regulatory infrastructure may constrain expansion as adoption accelerates.

A July 2, 2026 report highlighted how Monee draws on activity across Shopee, Garena and other Sea Group services to automate credit approvals, pricing and limits, while Trusting Social analyzes telecom usage and digital footprints. In the Philippines, Skyro combined device intelligence, telecom records, bureau data and transaction signals to manage a credit portfolio exceeding $200 million at the end of 2025, serving more than 1 million active customers. Its AI chatbot, Sky, provides round-the-clock support in English, Taglish and Tagalog, typically responding within one minute.