Alibaba fund, World Bank invest in Hong Kong-based fintech start-up

Hong Kong-based start-up CompareAsiaGroup has secured $50 million in funding from investors led by the World Bank's commercial lending arm, as the personal finance management platform looks to develop its technology and launch more products.

The International Finance Corp (IFC), as the World Bank unit is called, said it had agreed to invest $15 million in the firm. The other investors include Alibaba Entrepreneurs Fund, a not-for-profit fund launched by Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group, and Japan's SBI Group.

Existing investors of CompareAsiaGroup, such as Goldman Sachs Investment Partners and private equity firm Ace & Company, also took part in the funding round, the fintech company said without disclosing the breakdown for each investor.

CompareAsiaGroup helps consumers in Hong Kong, Indonesia and five others countries in Asia Pacific compare and buy financial products ranging from insurance, loans and credit cards.

It earns a fee from banks including HSBC, DBS and Standard Chartered and insurers such as FWD Group and QBE Insurance Group every time a person buys their products on its platform.

The company plans to expand its offerings in Southeast Asia and roll out more broadly products such as broadband services and mobile phone plans on its platform, CEO Sam Allen said.

"It's a great strategic fit for us to have the IFC on board," said Allen, on the sidelines of the RISE technology conference in Hong Kong. "The focus for us is how do we grow in Indonesia, Philippines and other countries where there's a huge population of unbanked people that is coming online every day."