SC Ventures recognised triumphs at Singapore Business Review Technology Excellence Awards 2025

The company received the Blockchain - Venture Capital award for leading the future of finance with smart investments.

SC Ventures earned recognition at the SBR Technology Excellence Awards 2025, which commended its investments in cutting-edge technologies.

SC Ventures, which is Standard Chartered’s innovation, fintech investment and ventures arm, , is reshaping the future of finance. Whereas typical corporate venture capital firms tend to focus mainly on financial returns, SC Ventures takes a hands-on approach by working closely with start-ups across their business and functional lines. It helps them grow whilst also driving long-term value for the bank and its partners.

SC Ventures focusses on three key areas, namely digital banking & lifestyle, trade & supply chains, and digital assets. These themes are powered by advanced technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain (Web3), ESG (environmental, social, and governance), and quantum computing. 

SC Ventures looks for fintech companies on the edge of breakthrough, where the bank and its partners can play an active role in accelerating their impact.

SC Ventures seeks to make smart investments and it does so by only choosing proven ideas. It invests in companies with strong track records and solid business models. These start-ups must offer real value and technology that can be used by the bank or its ventures. It is all about building solutions that are ready to scale.

Furthermore, SC Ventures has been ahead of the curve in the digital assets space. Back in 2016, the platform invested in Ripple, one of the first blockchain-based payments networks. In 2023, it sold its stake in Metaco to Ripple. This approach shows how it invests in emerging tech at the right time and exits when the market matures.

Unlike other financial institutions, SC Ventures saw early on that the market needed better infrastructure for digital assets. This is why it has built a strong group of ventures in this space, making it capable of meeting rising demand from institutional clients.

SC Ventures regards 2024 as a standout year. During the second quarter of 2024, Zodia Custody, SC Ventures’ digital asset custody firm, received funding from National Australia Bank. Moreover, Zodia Markets, another SC Ventures initiative, acquired Elwood Trading Desk to boost its over-the-counter trading. It also formed new partnerships with CoinMENA, Fireblocks, and Paxos — helping expand liquidity and support stablecoin transactions like PayPal’s PYUSD. In 2024, Zodia Markets traded over US$7b.

In the same quarter, Olea and SWIAT, both SC Ventures-backed ventures, teamed up to create fully digital supplier financing using blockchain. This combined Olea’s trade financing expertise with SWIAT’s tokenisation tech.

Meanwhile, during the third quarter, SC Ventures invested in One Trading, a top European crypto exchange. It became the first regulated platform in Europe to offer retail trading of perpetual futures.

SC Ventures continues to transform the financial world using technology and partnerships to solve real problems and build better solutions. It bridges gaps in the market and embraces innovation and, ultimately, redefines what the future of finance looks like.

As banking continues to evolve, SC Ventures remains focussed on one mission: to rewire the DNA of finance and shape a smarter and more inclusive future.

The SBR Technology Excellence Awards recognises technological innovations and companies in Singapore that are leading the digital journeys of their respective industries. The awards programme commends companies that pioneered groundbreaking IT products and solutions, and organisations from different industries that made an impact with their innovative technology.

The SBR Technology Excellence Awards is presented by Singapore Business Review Magazine. To view the full list of winners, click here. If you want to join the 2026 awards programme and be acclaimed for your company's outstanding contributions in pursuit of technological innovation, please contact Jane Patiag at [email protected].