In a banking landscape increasingly dominated by algorithm-driven dynamic pricing and relentless fee negotiations, Singapore’s Anext Bank is taking a contrarian stand. The digital wholesale lender, launched in 2022, has made universal pricing its cornerstone – offering identical interest rates, fees and loan terms to all small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), whether depositing $10 or $10 million.
“When we first started the bank, one of the key focuses was to make sure that our customers have all the time in the world to manage their business and not manage discussions with the bank in negotiating rates,” says Philip Tan, CFO of Anext Bank.
The approach is yielding remarkable growth. Anext surged to become a significant player among Singapore’s digital banks, with its loan book jumping 281% to S$847 million. Deposits rose 207% year-on-year to S$906 million, while cross-border transactions increased sixfold.
Breaking industry norms
Anext’s flat-pricing model is a stark anomaly in Asian banking. Competitors universally employ tiered pricing, typically based on two key factors: deal size and perceived risk. This often penalises smaller, younger businesses – precisely the segment facing Asia’s estimated US$5.7 trillion SME financing gap.
Among Singapore’s digital banking cohort, nuanced pricing strategies reveal this calculus. GXS Bank, backed by ride-hailing giant Grab, applies behavioural incentives to deposits – base interest plus activity-linked bonuses – while deploying dynamic floating pricing for loans targeting gig workers within its ecosystem.
Micro-enterprises should receive the same rates as corporates – no negotiations, no hidden conditions
Bennett Gan, Anext
Trust Bank, a Standard Chartered joint venture, scales deposit rates based on savings balance size and ties business loan pricing to cash-flow volatility. Even Green Link Digital Bank (GLDB) – Anext’s fellow wholesale licence holder – applies layered pricing for e-commerce platform suppliers, reflecting transaction volumes and buyer creditworthiness.
Anext flips this script. Their multi-currency account offers daily interest on SGD, USD and EUR balances at consistent rates for all customers. Local transfers and inward telegraphic transfers are free, while outward Swift transfers carry a flat fee, not a percentage. Loans start from S$5,000, with applications under S$30,000 requiring zero or minimal documentation. Crucially, all business loans feature a fixed effective interest rate (EIR) applied universally.
“Micro-enterprises should receive the same rates as corporates – no negotiations, no hidden conditions,” says Bennett Gan, Anext’s product commercialisation lead. “Standardised pricing lowers selection costs for SMEs and aligns with Ant International’s original mission of inclusive finance.”
The strategy resonates powerfully with its core demographic: 68% are micro-enterprises (revenue less than S$1 million), and 35% are startups under two years old.
The engine room: Tech, data and embedded finance
The critical question is how Anext mitigates risk while offering the most accommodating terms for SMEs. The answer lies in advanced technology and strategic data access.
Leveraging parent Ant International’s battle-tested fraud detection, facial recognition and credit underwriting models, Anext automates risk assessment. This tech focus underpins a dramatic improvement in cost efficiency: Anext’s cost-to-income ratio dropped from 187% in 2023 to 116% in 2024.
The true differentiator is embedded finance. Through its Anext Programme for Industry Specialists (APIs), the bank integrates directly into platforms. SMEs access accounts, fixed deposits and loans without leaving their workflow.
Today’s micro-business is tomorrow’s mid-market client. Grow with them and inclusion becomes sustainable
Philip Tan, Anext
One implementation example is with WorldFirst, a cross-border payments platform, where Anext provides interest-bearing accounts for users who previously had non-interest-bearing e-wallets.
This approach not only taps into new business channels but critically allows Anext to leverage these platforms’ data to better understand customer risk profiles – from payment patterns to transaction histories.
“At Anext Bank, we leverage SMEs’ transactional data to make faster and more reliable credit decisions,” Tan explains. “By looking at a business’s overall financial activity, we can assess creditworthiness effectively to offer tailored financing solutions, such as working capital loans or credit lines, to support SMEs in achieving their growth goals.”
Results are tangible. Anext has onboarded seven partners through this initiative, making financial services available to more than one million SMEs across seven markets, driving a 5.7-fold year-on-year increase in embedded finance revenue.
Losses and long-term logic: A sector in investment mode
Despite impressive growth, Anext reported a net loss of S$37.2 million in 2024, a 25% increase from 2023. Yet, this reflects a sector-wide reality, as all five of Singapore’s digital banks are operating at a loss.
“These aren’t pricing-strategy failures; they’re signs of an industry aggressively investing for scale,” observes a Hong Kong-based banker.
Global precedents suggest Anext’s model holds long-term promise. UK-based Monzo slashed customer acquisition costs by 40% with its simple £5 monthly fee structure, capturing 15% of the UK market. Revolut’s standardized subscription packages and unified 0.3% FX fee boosted retention and propelled it to more than 25 million users.
The road ahead: Scaling inclusion sustainably
Anext is expanding ambitiously. Fully remote onboarding has attracted diverse international clients, with foreign business owners comprising 37% of the bank’s customer base.
“We’re building a pipeline,” states Tan. “Today’s micro-business is tomorrow’s mid-market client. Grow with them and inclusion becomes sustainable.” The bank is patient, acknowledging micro-businesses will not drive near-term profits but represent future loyalty and volume.
Unexpectedly, Anext is also attracting larger SMEs drawn to its transparency and seamless user experience. Operational improvements, such as introducing a digital soft token as a new two-factor authentication method, cut account lockouts by 50%.
The revolution’s legacy may be less about flat fees than democratised access. As half of SMEs now seek financial services within non-banking platforms, Anext’s open architecture could prove its most enduring innovation.
“The pool of total SMEs in Singapore is more than 300,000, but we have a niche segment of customers that do not get financing from the bigger banks,” Tan concludes. “We are targeting the smaller companies that traditional banks don’t serve. Our job is to make their growth our growth.”
For Asia’s 100 million micro-SMEs, banking is no longer a luxury negotiated in wood-panelled offices. It’s a flat-fee utility, baked into the platforms where they sell, ship and thrive. The algorithms did not win – simplicity did.
