SINGAPORE, May 12, 2021 – Singapore fintech Aleta Planet said today it has formed a joint venture with award-winning software developer Fooyo to offer digital marketing and e-commerce solutions to meet rising demand from Singapore businesses preparing for the reopening of the China market.
The joint venture, AP Studios, will develop digital tools that will help merchants provide a richer, more interactive payment experience as well as engage their customers through the popular WeChat marketing platform in China.
With AP Studios, Aleta Planet, which is already connecting merchants to the UnionPay network in China and in 179 markets globally, will be able to offer a comprehensive and seamless marketing payment solution to these merchants.
Fooyo creates web and mobile apps to help users navigate tourism, retail and hospitality services. It is the developer behind the successful MySentosa app which allows users including many Chinese tourists, to access real-time information about the island resort. It also created the MuslimSG app, Chongqing Tourism Pass and Hongya Cave crowd monitoring solution.
AP Studios’ tools, which range from payment checkout webpages and chatbots to WeChat/Alipay mini programs, crowd-control monitoring solutions and interactive tourism apps, can be customised for merchants in retail, medical, education, tourism, government and other industries.
Businesses that want to develop a strong e-commerce presence will benefit from using AP Studios as a one-stop solution, without needing to deal with different service providers. A Singapore company founded by Li Shaohuan in 2014 and three former schoolmates from the National University of Singapore, Fooyo is one of only three WeChat mini program developers outside China, and the first in Singapore, certified by Tencent Academy and Tencent CEO Ma Huateng.
A variety of apps can be created in the WeChat mini program. For example, one app promotes F&B merchants through a food trail itinerary where customers can pre-order food and read reviews; another offers virtual campus tours of a list of universities to foreign students and allows them to pay for school expenses and course fees within the mini program.
Businesses that are part of the WeChat ecosystem will be able to potentially reach over 1.26 billion monthly active users worldwide, mostly mainlanders as well as at least one million Singapore residents.
Ryan Gwee, Aleta Planet’s Founder and Group Chairman said: “Everything we do as a fintech company is about innovation and getting the best talent to partner us. Shaohuan and his team have tremendous talent, especially in the areas of artificial intelligence (AI) and app design, and we are excited to launch AP Studios with Fooyo to expand our suite of digital marketing tools. Many of our clients have expressed the need for an all-in-one solution that will grow their digital presence in China. This venture will provide them with a holistic and comprehensive e-commerce solution to achieve their targets more efficiently.”
The tools to be developed will also enable merchants here to target Chinese tourists and business people who visit Singapore annually. In 2019 before Covid-19 led to closing of borders, more than three million mainlanders travelled to Singapore.
Fooyo’s Mr Li will head AP Studios as Managing Director, Solutions Team, under the Aleta Planet Group. The team’s combined expertise in AI, big data solutions, robotics and cloud computing has enabled Fooyo to clinch several government-commissioned projects.
Mr Li said: “This joint venture between a growing fintech company and a smart SaaS solution company will have an amplification effect for both our businesses. It is going to be a win-win solution. We aim to work with more industries and expand to countries beyond Singapore together.”