In recent years, the digitisation and transformation of the financial industry has accelerated to become an essential part of the economy. “This means that with the right nurturing, it can develop into high return investments, while making financial products accessible and seamless for everyone, everywhere.”
That’s how Finology was born, according to its Group CEO and co-founder, Robin Ang.
Helmed by himself and fellow co-founder, Jared Lim, the fintech specialises in enabling seamless end-to-end access to financial products and institutions through API-driven lending and insurance solutions.
Coming from a humble family of restaurateurs, entrepreneurship wasn’t something foreign to Robin. It was here that he learned the importance of innovation, resilience, passion and hard work; all things that has served him well over the years when it came to running his own business. “So, I try to always see the positives during setbacks and maintain a good mindset.”
Prior to Finology, Robin was behind numerous award-winning companies in the architectural & interior design and construction industries. Over the last two decades of his entrepreneurial journey, he discovered an untapped passion in wanting to work on innovative ideas that could not only empower individuals, but also help businesses be sustainable and effective. “Which is how I found myself in the Fintech industry,” Robin tells us.
“It’s one of the most actively growing fields and provides lots of opportunities for investment and development, both locally and internationally, in areas like lending, insurance, real estate, and automotive.”
In the early stages of founding Finology, Robin and Jared made their mark in the industry through Loanstreet, a consumer financial marketplace they co-founded together in 2012. The product was received tremendously and, by 2017, served more than a hundred thousand customers seeking various loan products.
Yet, despite the overwhelming success of Loanstreet in helping people young and old get easy access to affordable credit, improving their mobility and elevating their quality of life, the pair still felt there was more that could be done.
“We witnessed the growing frustrations with the cumbersome loan application processes that have been predominantly manual. We believe consumer access to financial products should be more inclusive and that this process can be automated to better manage risk while increasing efficiency and stability in the financial system.”
Before the pandemic, many financial institutions could opt to pursue their own innovation and transformation initiatives at their own pace. Now, the acceleration at which the industry is adapting to digitalisation has changed their perspectives.
With that came more partnerships and collaborations fostered between the financial institutions and fintech and insurtech companies, which is good news for the industry, the economy, and the people.
“We have seen that collaborating with fintech companies is the way to go. Established financial institutions don’t have to reinvent the wheel, leverage fintech’s learnings from the past years, and reduce time to market greatly,” says Robin when asked about this change.
“More innovative embedded finance will be easily accessible throughout all the common digital platforms. It will be a norm to have a seamless end-to-end solution for users.”
Finology has always been an enabler of embedded financial product offerings. The company recently introduced ‘LoanReport’, a home loan pre-approval tool, in collaboration with EdgeProp, adding to its growing roster of offerings catered to both purchasers and sellers.
Additionally, to match the growth its experienced over the last few years, the company recently underwent a little makeover to its logo and overall corporate identity with the launch of a brand new website catered to their future regional plans.
“We believe that this is a fitting update in showcasing how Finology has grown and evolved in recent years. This exercise also embodied our commitment to continuously pioneer in this evolving global market and to make financial products seamless and accessible to everyone.”
But that doesn’t mean he’s all work and no play. In his downtime, Robin enjoys spending time with his family, especially his four beautiful daughters, hitting the golf course with some good mates and in true entrepreneurial fashion, learning a little something new along the way.
“If my schedule permits, I like joining classes to enrich my knowledge and skills – such as completing MIT Entrepreneurial Boot Camp and WSET Level 2.”
As a firm believer that resilience and passion will lead you in whatever you do, Robin hopes that this philosophy rubs off on his team to serve them in their own endeavours the same way it has helped to shape the kind of leader he is today.
“If you love what you do, it is worth all the sweat. I want them to always persevere, think beyond the boundaries, and be in the right mindset to foster a positive working environment and trust with our clients and partners.”
“Life is full of curveballs! They say don’t be celebrating too fast and that is true. Our work is never done and there is always more we can improve – a better version, a better UI, a better delivery. So, I see it as an opportunity to improve, do better, think faster and act kinder,” adds Robin.
Moving forward, Robin and his team are gearing up for the next chapter in Finology’s journey to greatness and bringing their embedded end-to-end experience to more emerging countries in Asia-Pacific.
The company is also actively connecting with progressive players from the banking, property, automotive, and insurance industries, as well as digital businesses to amplify the efforts of making financial products more accessible and seamless.
“So, keep your eyes peeled for more exciting news from us!” closes Robin.
Penny For Your Thoughts
How would you define a “good life” and/versus a “successful life”? Good life = happy wife Successful life = ability to make a positive impact in someone’s life
If you could choose to be anyone in the world—fictional or non-fictional—who would you want to be, and why?
I just want to be me. ;) Advice you would give your younger self. Keep being yourself.