PayPal, one of the world’s leading digital payments company, announces today that it is working with food and beverage (F&B) outlets in Singapore to help them overcome their challenges in manpower and productivity through technology. The program is part of PayPal Innovation Lab, a first-of-its-kind collaboration between PayPal and Singapore’s government agencies, industry associations, small-medium enterprises (SMEs), startups and universities that aims to foster innovation, research and development (R&D), entrepreneurship, as well as talent and capability building expertise in Singapore.
Engaging and digitizing small businesses in Singapore
As a flagbearer for local small businesses, PayPal aims to enable SME businesses to move to mobile and digital commerce. SMEs contribute nearly half
[1] of Singapore’s gross national product (GDP), and are the key building block to the local economy. Through PayPal Innovation Lab, SMEs will be able to learn and integrate e-commerce and digital payments through multi-faceted seminars and partnerships with local solution providers.
PayPal is kick-starting the Lab’s SME outreach by focusing on a topic close to Singaporeans’ hearts – food. The SME outreach complements the government’s efforts in upskilling and enabling F&B operators with technology to help overcome their challenges in manpower and productivity.
Most immediately, PayPal is partnering with two solution providers – TabSquare and Integral Solutions – to provide more than 200 F&B establishments with in-store digital payment capability in the next year. For instance, customers simply need to call for the bill through the restaurant’s e-ordering tablet, and a message will be sent to their mobile numbers requesting for payment via their preferred method including PayPal, allowing customers to pay securely on their personal device. The move aims to greatly decrease the time it takes for consumers to request and make payment at the end of the meals, and also allow F&B operators to increase their productivity and deliver a better customer experience in spite of the manpower challenges.
Nurturing Singapore’s next generation of FinTech talent
Aside from working with SMEs and local payment solutions providers, PayPal Innovation Lab will also work with Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) on R&D to nurture Singapore’s next generation of FinTech talent to drive innovation out of Singapore and produce intellectual properties including patents, technology demonstrators and proof of concepts.
Over the next few years, Masters and PHD students from schools including National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University and Singapore Management University will work closely with PayPal on in-depth FinTech research topics including infocomm security, data mining, artificial intelligence and predictive analytics. Students will have access to PayPal’s best talent, resources and experience to create and enable next generation and new types of payment systems.
Creating future solutions with the next generation of FinTech startups
As a firm believer of innovation as the impetus for strong economic growth, PayPal launched its FinTech startup incubation program as part of the Innovation Lab last month. PayPal Incubator currently hosts three startups - Blockchain wallet ONEPAY, e-commerce solution Prosecure.me, and invoice finance marketplace InvoiceInterchange. The nine-month program offers numerous opportunities including coaching and mentorship by PayPal executives and various subject matter experts; networking opportunities through PayPal’s network and venture capital connections.
The program is housed in a specially designed co-working space in PayPal Singapore’s Technology Center, and is the first FinTech incubation program in the region where startups sit side-by-side with the company’s staff, making PayPal’s business and engineering resources easily available to them.
Ushering in the Future Economy for everyone
“We are excited to launch the PayPal Innovation Lab in Singapore. This city-state has inspired and continues to inspire many cities and nations around the globe because of its great achievements in the past 51 years. Singapore is the most educated country
[2], one of the most innovative countries
[3], the world’s easiest country to do business in for the past seven years
[4], and the second most technologically advanced country
[5]. The country achieved all of these in 51 years by focusing on the potential future, and by setting the tone for where the world should head to. By locating PayPal Innovation Lab in Singapore, we are demonstrating our commitment to partner with this country for the Future of Money,” said Dr. Rohan Mahadevan, CEO for PayPal Pte. Ltd. and Senior Vice President for PayPal Asia Pacific.
Ms. Thien Kwee Eng, Assistant Managing Director, Singapore Economic Development Board said, “EDB is working to catalyze co-innovation partnerships between MNCs, SMEs and startups in Singapore. Our large base of companies across industries provides good opportunity for the co-development of new solutions in sectors such as the finance industry.” She added, “We also welcome digital payments companies like PayPal to leverage Singapore’s digital infrastructure and talent to grow their businesses and partner our locally based SMEs in enhancing their competitiveness.”
The launch of PayPal Innovation Lab today was officiated by Mr. S Iswaran, Minister for Trade and Industry (Industry), the Honourable Kirk Wagar, U.S. Ambassador to Singapore, and Dr. Mahadevan. The ceremony was attended by partners from Economic Development Board (EDB), SPRING Singapore, Infocomm Development Authority of Singapore (IDA), the Trade Associations and Chambers (TAC), representatives of local universities and the finance industry.
The launch was followed by the second annual FinTech XChange, an interactive conference organized by PayPal for industry professionals across Asia Pacific. Themed ‘Transforming Financial Services through Innovation’, the conference focused on disruptive technologies in the areas of financial services, e-commerce, payments, and information security. Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan, Minister for Foreign Affairs, Minister-in-Charge of the Smart Nation Initiative was the opening keynote speaker, and Apple Co-Founder Mr. Steve Wozniak rounded up the afternoon session with a fireside chat hosted by Dr. Rohan.
[2]OECD Global Education Report 2015, for Mathematics and Science
[3]Global Innovation Index 2016 by INSEAD, WIPO & Cornell University
[5]WEF Global Information Technology Report