November 26, 2015
Thomson Reuters Collaborates with the University of Cambridge, Tsinghua University and the University of Sydney on Asia Pacific’s First Alternative Finance Benchmarking Survey
Hong Kong - Thomson Reuters today announced its collaboration with The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance at Cambridge Judge Business School, the Tsinghua University Graduate School of Shenzhen and the University of Sydney Business School to conduct the 2015 Asia-Pacific Alternative Finance Benchmarking Survey.
The survey will be the first-ever comprehensive study of crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending and other forms of alternative finance across the Asia-Pacific region – including Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, India, Australia and New Zealand.
Sanjeev Chatrath, Managing Director, Finance & Risk, Asia Pacific at Thomson Reuters said: “Alternative finance is starting to gain significant momentum across the Asia Pacific region, rapidly catching up with Europe and the Americas. The 2015 Asia-Pacific Alternative Finance Benchmarking Survey will more definitively track this progress across the region. We are pleased to support the University of Cambridge, Tsinghua University and the University of Sydney on this initiative and look forward to seeing the results.”
Raghavendra Rau, Director of Research at the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) added: “The Asia Pacific region includes many of the most populous and fastest growing developing countries in the world – China, India and Indonesia and many more. The rapid uptake of mobile technologies and the permeation of social media are enabling these countries to leapfrog traditional banking infrastructure, which suggests that the potential growth of innovative alternative finance markets in the Asia-Pacific may be higher than other regions.”
The survey is also supported by KPMG, CME Group Foundation, the ACCA and 20 leading alternative finance industry and academic research partners across Asia-Pacific and beyond, including the Crowdfunding Institute of Australia, LendIt, Crowdfund China Society, Hong Kong Crowdfunding Association, Wangdaizhijia, New Zealand Crowdfunding Society, Japan Crowdfunding Council, Crowdfund Asia Association, Korean FinTech Forum, ShengZhen Crowdfunding Association, Change Fusion Thailand, World Crowdfunding Conference, Crowdsourcing Week, Crowdfund Vibe, FinTech Hong Kong, the Asian Venture Philanthropy Network (AVPN), the CrowdfundInsider, the Nagoya University, the University of Amsterdam and the Ahmedabad University.
The survey is now live and closes on the 18th of December. Results will be made available free to the public in the 2015 China Alternative Finance Benchmarking Report and the 2015 Asia Pacific Alternative Finance Benchmarking Report, due to be published in early 2016. All findings will be aggregated either by country, region or alternative financing models and no individual platform/provider’s data will be divulged.
All crowdfunding, peer-to-peer lending and other alternative finance providers, operating in the Asia-Pacific area (excluding the America’s), are invited to contribute to the benchmarking survey below. Research findings will be presented only in aggregated form (e.g. by countries, regions and models) and individual platform’s data confidentiality is ensured. All participating platforms will be acknowledged in the benchmarking report, displayed with their respective logos.
Main Survey Link in English:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AltFin_AsiaPacific
China Benchmarking Survey Link in Chinese:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/AltFin_GreaterChinaSurvey
Asia-Pacific Survey in Korean:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Altfin_KoreanSurvey
Asia-Pacific Survey in Japanese:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Altfin_JapaneseSurvey
Thomson Reuters
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About the research partners
University of Cambridge
This research is led by the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, Cambridge Judge Business School. The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance is an international, interdisciplinary, academic research institute, dedicated to the study of alternative finance, which includes financial channels and instruments that emerge outside of the traditional financial system (i.e. regulated banks and capital markets).
Examples of alternative finance channels are online 'marketplaces' such as equity and rewards-based crowdfunding, peer-to-peer consumer/business lending, and third-party payment platforms. Alternative instruments include SME mini-bonds, private placements and other 'shadow banking' mechanisms, as well as social impact bonds and community shares used by non-profit enterprises and alternative currencies. The mission of the University of Cambridge is to contribute to society through the pursuit of education, learning and research at the highest international levels of excellence.
Tsinghua University Graduate School of Shenzhen
Tsinghua University was established in 1911. It is a research university located in Beijing, China, and is one of the nine members in the elite C9 League of universities. With its motto of Self-Discipline and Social Commitment, Tsinghua University describes itself as being dedicated to academic excellence. The Graduate School at Shenzhen, Tsinghua University, was jointly founded by Tsinghua University and the Shenzhen Municipal Government for cultivating top level professionals and carrying out scientific and technological innovations.
Directly affiliated with Tsinghua University in Beijing, the Graduate School plays an important role in Tsinghua's commitment to achieve international prominence. The new campus is located in the University Town of Shenzhen, sharing the same culture and style, as well as the same goal of excellence as the Beijing Campus. The primary goal of the Graduate School is to cultivate professionals with leadership capability, international vision, enterprising spirit and a wide range of knowledge. The Graduate School serves the regional economy and society by developing top quality technical and leadership education, initiating original researches including low-carbon technologies and FinTech, and facilitating the transfer of high technology to related industries in the vicinity.
University of Sydney Business School
The University of Sydney is one of Australia’s most prestigious tertiary institutions and its Business School has a well-deserved international reputation for cutting edge undergraduate and postgraduate programs that are industry focused, experiential in nature and designed to provide students with the skills to achieve their ambitions in a dynamic commercial environment. The School’s Master of Management and Master of Commerce programs rank amongst the world’s best and its leadership oriented MBA continues to break new ground in the field of executive education.
The University of Sydney Business School’s multidisciplinary research networks support innovative inquiry that adds value to business, informs public policy, professionalises the not-for-profit sector and seeks responses to the key challenges of the coming decades including environmental degradation, climate change, poverty, social inclusion and financial stability.