China drives Asia's financial technology investment: report

BEIJING -- Growing investment in financial technology startups backed by Chinese venture capital (VC) has driven total funding in Asia to a new high, KPMG said in a report Thursday.

In Q1, China attracted $2.4 billion of investment into VC-backed fintech companies, up from the $300 million registered in the fourth quarter last year.

Financial technology (fintech) is a line of businesses that apply technology to financial services such as mobile transactions.

"Global and domestic interest in China's fintech system continues," said Raymond Cheong, a partner of KPMG China.

Total investment into VC-backed fintech companies in Asia hit a new high of $2.6 billion in Q1, compared to just $500 million in the previous quarter,the report said.

KPMG attributed the large investment to multiple opportunities for leveraging innovative fintech companies.

The report also noted that China accounted for almost half, 49 percent, of the 4.9 billion global investment recorded in the first quarter this year.

With widespread innovation, consumers are increasingly availing themselves of technology and liquidity within the China VC community, which is good for fintech investment, said Cheong.