Filipino startup Acudeen Technologies plans to expand to six countries with a combined total market of over $400 billion.
Acudeen chief executive Mario Jordan Fetalino III said in a statement the company would launch full-scale operations in Myanmar this month and in Vietnam and Indonesia by next year.
“Like the Philippines, small business owners in these countries face the same perils with regard to mobility due to inaccessible and expensive financing options,” he said.
Acudeen also decided to establish its regional headquarters in Singapore to facilitate the expansion binge to emerging markets.
Fetalino said the establishment of the regional headquarters would serve as “a stepping stone towards its goal of becoming a marketplace which essentially democratizes financial inclusion for everyone regardless of geographic location, allowing their system to be implemented on a global scale.”
This move will make Acudeen’s services more accessible and leverages the capability to better support its remote deployment across Southeast Asia.
Fetalino, however, said the overseas expansion could face headwinds in the form of regulatory and bureaucratic hurdles.
“Though belonging to one region, the policies and regulations, and the general business environment in Southeast Asia are very different per country, which is why agile companies are the ones succeeding in this region,” Fetalino said.
Fetalino said Acudeen has been very active in finding the right partners in the region.
Acudeen facilitates receivable discounting for small businesses in the country.
For 2018, the company targets a 10-fold increase in growth to $30 million from last year’s $3 million as it continues to support the economic development in the Philippines through financial inclusion.
The technology company enables small and medium enterprises and micro, small and medium enterprise finance receivables ahead of time as its platform allows transactions to happen fast from receivable uploaded cash within days.