Standard Chartered’s transaction banking business is being shaped by structural changes in how capital, trade and liquidity move across Asia, particularly within the Association of South East Nations (ASEAN) where regional integration is accelerating. The region is increasingly defined by intra-Asia flows, multi-market supply chains and more complex treasury structures across jurisdictions.

Ankur Kanwar, Head of Transaction Banking & Cash Management, Singapore & ASEAN, Global Head of Payment and Treasury Solutions, noted that the China–ASEAN trade corridor has recently surpassed $1 trillion. This reflects not only the growth of trade but also the increasing depth of economic linkages across the region.

Financial flows are also changing in direction. Kanwar noted that flows are becoming “increasingly multi-directional rather than anchored to the traditional east-west corridor”, as corporates expand across ASEAN and build more distributed operating models. This shift is accompanied by greater complexity in managing liquidity across currencies and regulatory environments.

Supply chains are similarly evolving. Diversification strategies have moved beyond China-plus-one to a broader spread across ASEAN markets, increasing interdependencies between them. This is raising demand for coordinated solutions across payments, collections, foreign exchange and trade.

In this context, transaction banking is being structured to support clients across capital deployment, operating flows and treasury management, particularly in a region where these activities are increasingly interconnected.

ASEAN flows shaped by FDI, consumption, supply chains and treasury centralisation

Transaction banking demand in ASEAN is being driven by sustained foreign direct investment (FDI) into the region, which continues to anchor capital flows and create downstream requirements for guarantees, payments and trade-related financing.

Kanwar noted that ASEAN attracts “about 15% to 17% of global FDI”, with each market developing a distinct role. Malaysia is expanding in shared services and capability centres, while Indonesia is receiving inflows linked to infrastructure and industrial projects, including those supported by Chinese investment.

Large regional initiatives such as the ASEAN Power Grid are adding further complexity to these flows. The project, which aims to connect electricity networks across Southeast Asia and enable cross-border power trading, involves multiple stakeholders, phased funding and milestone-based disbursements. Kanwar noted that the bank supports clients by structuring payment flows and risk controls around these projects, ensuring that funds are released against agreed milestones, obligations between counterparties are secured and multi-bank financing arrangements are coordinated within a controlled account structure. It also reflects how transaction banking is involved at the early stages of capital deployment.

Domestic consumption is a second major driver. ASEAN’s growing middle class is attracting fintech and paytech firms into the region, particularly from China, to capture payment and collection flows. This is increasing demand for infrastructure that can support high-volume, real-time transactions across markets.

Supply chain diversification is the third force. The shift has moved beyond China-plus-one to a more distributed model across markets such as Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia. Kanwar noted that most investments have continued despite tariff considerations, with companies absorbing these costs and proceeding with expansion.

The fourth is treasury centralisation. Singapore remains the primary hub, with treasury centres “more than doubled” post-COVID, but other markets are developing financial centres to retain liquidity domestically. Standard Chartered is also advising regulators, including in Vietnam, on the development of international financial centre frameworks.

Positions franchise around network depth, domestic capability, innovation and advisory

Standard Chartered’s approach in ASEAN combines network reach with domestic execution. In a region where clients operate across multiple jurisdictions, the ability to support both cross-border and local requirements is critical.

Kanwar highlighted that the bank is “the only bank with presence in 10 ASEAN markets”, with seven offering full transaction banking capabilities. This footprint allows it to support intra-ASEAN flows while linking them to global corridors.

The bank is also building domestic capabilities typically associated with local institutions. Kanwar pointed to integration with tax authorities for corporate tax payments, connectivity to real-time payment systems across ASEAN and the ability to support liquidity structures such as cash pooling in markets including Indonesia and Malaysia. These capabilities enable the bank to support clients’ domestic operations alongside cross-border activity.

Innovation forms another pillar. ASEAN is used as an early deployment ground for new capabilities, including quick response (QR)-based real-time payments and tokenised deposit use cases.

The advisory role has also been formalised through the Payments and Treasury Solutions team. The focus is on supporting clients in areas such as treasury centralisation, in-house banking and liquidity structures, aligning the bank more closely with client operating models.

Beyond-border finance is evolving from capital flows into integrated liquidity, FX and supply chain structures

Cross-border finance in ASEAN is increasingly shaped by how capital flows transition into operating and treasury structures. Transaction banking is involved across this progression rather than limited to payments or trade.

Kanwar described the starting point as capital inflows into projects, where banks support clients through guarantees, escrow arrangements and account bank structures, particularly in multi-party transactions with milestone-based payments.

As projects move into execution, these flows become operational. Kanwar noted that “trade and cash are two sides of the balance sheet”, highlighting the need to integrate payments, collections and trade finance in supporting ongoing activity.

The next layer involves liquidity and foreign exchange (FX). As operations expand across markets, clients require structures to manage funding, currency exposure and intercompany flows. Kanwar pointed to the importance of enabling clients to optimise liquidity through internal funding structures rather than relying solely on external borrowing.

This extends into supply chain finance, where larger transaction sizes and longer tenors are driving more complex financing structures. Kanwar noted that many clients are using bank-agnostic platforms, and the bank’s approach is to “follow our clients” onto these platforms to provide financing and support.

Cross-border payments remain fragmented while FX becomes a core driver of client value

Domestic payment systems across ASEAN have become significantly more efficient, supported by real-time payment infrastructure and QR-based systems. However, these improvements have not fully translated into cross-border payments.

Kanwar noted that domestic payments are now “as efficient as it can be”, but cross-border payments remain a “huge opportunity”. Fragmentation across currencies, regulations and systems continues to create inefficiencies in settlement and reconciliation.

Initiatives such as Project Nexus aim to address this by linking domestic systems across countries, but progress remains gradual given the number of stakeholders involved. In the meantime, banks continue to manage cross-border complexity within existing structures.

Foreign exchange (FX) is therefore becoming more central to transaction banking. Kanwar said FX has delivered “double-digit growth” in ASEAN, driven by companies using hubs such as Singapore to manage regional flows. FX is increasingly integrated into payment and liquidity processes rather than treated as a separate function.

While the US dollar remains dominant, there is growing demand for offshore renminbi and local currency solutions in markets such as Indonesia and Malaysia. Kanwar noted that this shift remains at an early stage, with most flows still denominated in US dollars.

Digital assets, platform transformation and AI are shaping the next phase of transaction banking

The next phase of transaction banking is being shaped by developments in digital infrastructure, new forms of money and platform modernisation. These changes are influencing how banks design systems and deliver services.

Kanwar identified three priorities. The first is improving cross-border payments, including through partnerships such as Partior, which enable real-time, 24/7 cross-border transactions with integrated foreign exchange.
The second is digital assets. The bank is developing tokenised deposit capabilities that allow clients to move funds “24/7… cross-border as well”, alongside solutions that enable clients to accept stablecoins while receiving fiat in their accounts. These capabilities are supported by digital custody and conversion infrastructure.

The third is platform transformation. Initiatives such as SC Pay and Trade Express are designed to support real-time processing, application programming interface (API) integration and future digital asset use cases, supporting more scalable transaction handling.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is being applied to improve efficiency and client experience. Kanwar described two areas of focus: automating internal processes such as reconciliation and transaction handling, and enhancing client servicing through digital interfaces.

Client flows are shifting from West to East as Asian corporates expand regionally

The composition of transaction banking clients in ASEAN is shifting, reflecting broader changes in global economic activity. There is increasing activity driven by Asian corporates, particularly from North Asia. Kanwar noted that Chinese corporates are establishing treasury and operating structures in ASEAN, often using Singapore as a regional hub.

He identified two main segments. The first comprises large corporates and state-owned enterprises setting up treasury centres and in-house banks to manage regional and global operations. The second consists of fintech and paytech firms expanding across ASEAN to capture domestic consumption and digital payment opportunities.

These clients are also expanding beyond ASEAN into markets such as the Middle East and Africa, increasing demand for cross-border transaction banking capabilities. This reinforces the importance of network connectivity combined with local execution.

The shift in client mix is contributing to increased volumes and more complex flows, particularly as these companies operate across multiple jurisdictions.

Execution will determine whether network and innovation translate into advantage

The outlook for ASEAN transaction banking remains strong, supported by sustained investment, growing consumption and supply chain diversification. Kanwar described the outlook as “super positive”, pointing to demographic strength and continued regional growth.

However, fragmentation across currencies, regulations and payment systems remains a structural constraint. While initiatives such as Nexus and developments in digital assets may improve efficiency over time, these solutions are still evolving and will take time to scale across markets.

At the same time, clients are increasingly operating on multi-bank and platform-based models. This reduces the extent to which any single bank can control flows and increases the importance of integration into client ecosystems. Kanwar acknowledged this shift, noting that the bank follows its clients onto platforms rather than competing against them.

For Standard Chartered, the strategy combines network reach, domestic capability, advisory and platform investment to support flows across capital, operations and treasury structures in ASEAN.

The effectiveness of this strategy will depend on execution, particularly the bank’s ability to integrate into client platforms, navigate regulatory fragmentation and scale emerging infrastructure such as real-time cross-border payments and digital asset capabilities.