On October 29th, ACCESS Health and MetLife Foundation launched the Fintech for Health Innovation Platform aimed at promoting cross-sectoral innovation that helps people pay for and access the care they need, when they need it. Focused on six markets across Asia, the platform will conduct research on best practices blending finance and healthcare innovations; facilitate connections between organizations that promote innovation in healthcare access and affordability; and test and scale projects that help people pay for an dafford the care they need, using digital financial services and a financial inclusion approach.

The launch this month brought together a collection of innovative thinkers in the health, technology, and financial industries. The morning began with a word from Krishna Thacker from MetLife Foundation on the important role of digital solutions in improving access to care across Asia. William Haseltine, founder and president of ACCESS Health International, then welcomed the audience and spoke of ACCESS’ widening role in bringing together industries and encouraging collaboration that will bring digital financial solutions to those who need it most. Adrienne Mendenhall, director of business development at ACCESS Health in Singapore next presented the Fintech for Health Platform, outlining the financial pain points experienced by patients throughout their health journey and explaining how the platform will bring together industries to discover how to address these issues through digital financial solutions.

The morning continued with a panel discussion with industry leaders including, Frank Troise, Founder and CEO of SoHo Capital; Tony Estrella, Managing Director of Taliossa Investment and Advisory for Health and Insurance Startups’ Jeff Chan, Group Chief Innovation Officer and Health of Capital Markets, Fullerton Health; and moderated by Sejal Mistry, Director of Research and Development at ACCESS Health. Panelists discussed the current fintech ecosystem in Asia and described their view of the fintech for health opportunities. Chan spoke about the key areas he could foresee healthcare and fintech working together and discussed a potential strategy to align interests. Troise talked about the very great struggle of reaching the unbanked and how financial institutions can work alongside health and tech industries to improve access and affordability. Tony spoke from an investor point of view, outlining the technology tools that can be used to improve access to care in indigent populations and the technological and regulatory foundations necessary for their use.
The launch was brought to a close by a productive networking session. ACCESS Health and MetLife Foundation look forward to a fruitful relationship over the next three years and the furthering of strategic partnerships between the fintech and healthcare industries in Asia.