Is Sri Lanka latest to fall into a China debt trap?

Indebtedness to China has obliged Sri Lanka to hand over a major port to its financier. Is this an emerging pattern in Asia? Nikkei staff writer Yuji Kuronuma reports. 

Slow progress for Indonesia’s BRI high-speed railway

China’s Belt and Road Initiative is set to include the first high-speed railway in Indonesia, but questions linger on the funding prospects for the $6bn project. Nikkei staff writer Erwida Maulia reports.

Myanmar finds small solutions are best as microfinance fills funding gap

Microfinance is coming to the rescue in Myanmar as the country’s nascent capital markets struggle to meet its funding needs. Nikkei staff writer Yukako Ono reports.

India’s NSE and BSE bourses square up for battle

The former Bombay Stock Exchange is taking the fight to the tech-savvy National Stock Exchange. By Nikkei staff writers Rosemary Marandi and Kiran Sharma. 

Singapore aims to be a fintech kingmaker

The city-state of Singapore is beefing up its financial hub credentials by working hard to expand its fintech market. Nikkei staff writer Mayuko Tani reports.

Thai stock exchange reveals plans to double its market cap

The Stock Exchange of Thailand has ambitions to double its market capitalisation by 2020 by diversifying its pool of investors. Nikkei staff writer Yukako Ono reports.

The infrastructure bottleneck holding Asia back

Asia's rapid development over the past two decades has brought the continent to the brink of becoming the world's economic powerhouse. However, its infrastructure shortfall – believed to be worth $6500bn between 2015 and 2020 – is threatening to hold the region back, unless it can scrape together the required funding to fill this gap.