Contour has opened an innovation lab In Singapore where it will collaborate closely with its growing network of banks, corporates and ecosystem partners to research and develop new, digitally native trade finance solutions.
Dubbed the “Future of Finance Lab,” the facility will further Contour’s efforts to develop the digital infrastructure to address longstanding inefficiencies in trade by removing barriers, simplifying workflows, and making trade more accessible to all.
Beyond its fully digitised Letter of Credit (LC) service that is currently in live production, Contour will soon expand into other areas of trade finance to bring greater value to its members. It has formed an in-house development team to experiment with new trade product offerings and is expected to double the team size in the next year.
“With the launch of the Future of Finance Lab, we are excited to further ramp up our innovation efforts as we develop the digital infrastructure for the industry, making trade more accessible, simple and efficient for all,” said Carl Wegner, CEO of Contour.
Sopnendu Mohanty, chief fintech officer at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), said digitalising trade processes through an accelerated adoption of new technology and innovation has been a focus area in MAS’ fintech agenda.
“As we emerge gradually from the pandemic, we believe that various digital solutions and connectors interoperating seamlessly can make trade borderless, more efficient and hence, accelerate the recovery of global trade,” said Mohanty.
