Eric Jing, Chairman of Ant Group, recently presented his vision for propelling small-to-medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) into the next level of productivity at the Singapore FinTech Festival. He posited that artificial intelligence (AI)-driven financial tools and tokenised transactions would fundamentally transform how SMEs function and compete on a global scale.
Jing highlighted Ant Group’s dedication to equipping SMEs with AI-driven payment and operational tools. He believes the tools will position companies to reap the rewards of an upcoming global productivity boom. Jing expressed his belief that frontier technology can significantly foster inclusion and support SMEs.
Ant International, which became autonomous in 2024, has its headquarters in Singapore. It collaborates with over 1,400 institutional partners and its global payment and digitalisation network caters to 150 million businesses. The network also links QR-based wallets reaching more than 1.8 billion consumer accounts worldwide.
Jing forecasts an increase in personalised AI financial advisors for consumers and an accelerated shift toward agentic commerce for businesses. He predicts the latter will be driven by autonomous systems capable of managing comprehensive payment and operational tasks. Jing believes that AI agents could be instrumental in helping SMEs that struggle with the complexities of the global trade environment.
Antom, the merchant services division of Ant International, is already leveraging AI with Antom Copilot. This tool streamlines payment integration, onboarding, risk settings, and chargeback management. According to Ant International, Copilot reduces integration time by over 90%, improves winning rates for chargebacks by three percentage points, and cuts resolution time by 46%.
Antom also recently launched EPOS360, an integrated application that combines POS systems, payments, banking, lending, and growth support into one platform. This tool is designed to help micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) expand more efficiently. Jing depicted these AI agents as virtual Chief Operating Officers (COOs) and Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) that serve as planners and implementers for SMEs.
Jing stressed that autonomous multi-agent systems capable of executing complex transactions are not just theoretical but are already becoming a reality. He maintained that these systems will form the backbone of the next phase of global digital commerce, especially for SMEs operating internationally.
Jing underscored the importance of tokenisation of money as a key facilitator of real-time global transactions, especially for companies engaged in international trade. He also emphasised the importance of policy guidance from regulators.
In the context of Project Guardian, Ant International has taken part in pilot programmes involving tokenised money and cross-border transactions. These trials have illustrated how blockchain-based payments can provide real-time transparency and credibility to SMEs operating globally.
Through the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) PathFin.ai initiative, Ant International is also sharing its expertise on AI implementation. Jing highlighted the company’s Falcon Time-Series Transformer, an 8.5-billion-parameter model for FX and liquidity forecasting, which has contributed to significant improvement in cash-flow prediction accuracy and reduced hedging costs for businesses.
What is Ant Group’s vision for SMEs?
Ant Group aims to equip SMEs with AI-driven financial tools and other operational aids to boost their productivity and global competitiveness.
How is Ant International leveraging AI for SMEs?
Ant International uses AI through tools like Antom Copilot and EPOS360 to streamline payment integration, onboarding, risk settings, and chargeback management, making these processes more efficient for SMEs.
What are the benefits of tokenised money for SMEs?
Tokenised money can facilitate real-time global transactions, providing transparency and credibility for SMEs that operate internationally. Through blockchain-based payments, SMEs can gain a competitive edge in the global market.
