Sample Report: AI in Asia’s E-Commerce and Payments: Adoption, ROI, Risk, and Governance Outlook 2025

Description

Region: APAC

Countries: Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam

‍Pages: 79

Publication Date: 04.07.2025

Questions Covered in the report:

• What share of companies in Asia reported regular use of AI systems in 2025?
• Which SEA country had the highest share of AI adoption among E-Commerce sellers in 2025?
• What challenge did firms in Asia-Pacific face when implementing AI-driven fraud systems in 2025?
• How did ROI perceptions differ between AI Adepts and AI Agnostics in SEA in 2025?
• What was the leading AI function used by sellers in Asia in late 2024?

Key Findings:

AI Adoption in Asia’s E-Commerce and Payments Spurs Growth and Risk Mitigation, but Highlights Regional Gaps and Cost Barriers

AI Progress Uneven Across Asia’s E-Commerce Landscape

Asia’s E-Commerce sector shows significant disparities in AI development. While India and China lead with more advanced deployments, much of Southeast Asia is still early in its AI journey. As per Lazada Group, as of February 2025, half of Southeast Asian E-Commerce sellers are in the aspirational phase of AI adoption, while only a quarter achieve broad operational integration. This underlines a critical need for scalable infrastructure and targeted support in the region.

Simple Tools Widespread, Broader Use Limited

Adoption of AI is largely limited to basic tools like chatbots. More complex solutions such as predictive analytics and smart automation remain underused. Sellers fall into three categories: Adepts, Aspirants, and Agnostics, each facing different operational realities. According to Lazada Group, high costs (64%) and uncertainty (61%) remain top barriers to AI adoption among Southeast Asian E-Commerce sellers in February 2025. These constraints hinder scaling efforts despite growing awareness and interest.

AI Brings Promise and Pressure

AI adoption promises efficiency and growth, but it also introduces new risks. In particular, fraud has risen dramatically. According to TechNode, in 2024, AI-linked fraud rates surge over 200% in Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia, highlighting rising risks in Southeast Asia’s digital payments. In response, financial institutions are ramping up security infrastructure with AI-enabled monitoring, biometric tools, and anti-fraud protocols to protect digital ecosystems.

Regulatory Innovation Supports Safer AI Integration

Governments are playing a key role in steering responsible AI development. Sandbox initiatives in countries like Singapore, Malaysia, and Korea offer controlled environments for testing AI in finance and retail. The OECD emphasizes that facilitators play a crucial role in leveling the playing field in digital finance, particularly in markets dominated by large incumbents with privileged access to data and distribution channels. These initiatives aim to ensure that startups and smaller E-Commerce players can access innovation without being edged out by dominant platforms

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Table of Content:

1.         Key Takeaways

2.         Management Summary

3.          AI Adoption Landscape & Regional Patterns

3.1.          Regional Adoption Benchmarks

•       Asia: Adoption of AI Systems by Country, in % of Resp. Reporting Regular Use*, Nov 2024 - Jan 2025

•       SEA: Share of E-Commerce Sellers by Level of AI Adoption, in % of Resp., February 2025

•       SEA: Claimed vs Actual AI Adoption Rates by E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Respond., 2025  

3.2          Seller Segmentation & Barriers

•       Asia: Perception of AI Benefits Over Risks, in % of Respondents by Country, Nov 2024 - Jan 2025

•       SEA: Seller Perceptions of AI Benefits, in % of Respondents, February 2025

•       SEA: Barriers to AI Adoption Among Online Sellers, in % of Respondents, February 2025

•       SEA: Share of AI Adepts by Country, in % of E-Commerce Sellers, February 2025

•       SEA: Share of AI Agnostics by Country, in % of E-Commerce Sellers, February 2025

•       SEA: Share of AI Aspirants by Country, in % of E-Commerce Sellers, February 2025

•       SEA: Key Areas to Improve Seller Experience Among AI Agnostics, in % of E-Com. Sellers, Feb. 2025

•       SEA: Key Areas to Improve Seller Experience Among AI Aspirants, in % of E-Com. Sellers, Feb. 2025

•       SEA: Key Areas to Improve Seller Experience Among AI Adepts, in % of E-Com. Sellers, Feb. 2025

3.3         Regional Country Deep Dive

•       Singapore: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool, Feb. 2025

•       Malaysia: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool, Feb. 2025

•       Indonesia: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool, Feb. 2025

•       Thailand: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool, Feb. 2025

•       Philippines: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool, Feb. 2025

•       Vietnam: AI Adoption by Tool Type Among E-Commerce Sellers, in % of Resp. Using Each Tool,  Feb. 2025

4.        Functional Use Cases & Economic Impact

4.1.         E-Commerce Seller Operations

•       SEA: AI Adoption by Business Function and Readiness Group, in % of Functions, Feb. 2025

•       SEA: AI Tool Usage, Functional Adoption Levels, and Seller Readiness by Market, 2025

•       SEA: Share of E-Commerce Sellers Using Selected AI Tools, in % of Resp., February 2025

•       APAC: Consumer Usage of Offline, Digital, & AI Channels for Product Discovery, in % of Resp., 2024

•       APAC: Consumer Usage of Offline, Digital, & AI Channels for Product Research, in % of Resp., 2024

•       SEA: Enablers of AI Adoption in E-Commerce and Digital Payments, April 2025

•       SEA: Average Cost Reduction from AI/GenAI, in % of Total Costs, 2023 & 2027

•       SEA: Average Revenue Growth from AI/GenAI, in % Revenue Growth, 2023 & 2027

4.2.         Payments & FinTech Use Cases

•       Asia: AI Applications in Credit Inclusion, Finance Automation, and Procurement Innovation, April 2025  

•       Asia: AI-Driven Cloud Banking, Investment Analytics, and Vertical B2B Financial Solutions, April 2025

•       APAC: AI Integration, Stablecoin Cards, Tokenised Transfers, and Micro-Merchant Access, June 2025

5.            Risk Management, Trust & Security

5.1          Fraud & Threat Trends

•       SEA: Year-over-Year Increase in AI-linked Fraud Rate, in %, 2024

•       APAC: Synthetic Identity Fraud, Deepfakes, Verification Gaps and Country Trends in FinTech, 202

5.2          Detection Tools & Risk Models

•       SEA: AI Detection with 80%+ False Positives, Generative AI for Alerts and Support, 2024

•       SEA: Risk-Scoring Models, Network Analytics, and Data-Sharing Efforts, 2024

•       APAC: AI in Fraud Detection, Real-Time Payment Security, and Biometric Authentication, July 2025

•       APAC: AI-Driven Enterprise Fraud Management, Identity Verification, and Integration Challenges, July 2025

5.3          Trust & Readiness

•       Asia: Intentional Use and Trust of AI at Work by Country, in % of Respondents, Nov 2024 - Jan 2025

•       Asia: Trust and Acceptance of AI Systems by Country, in % of Respondents, Nov 2024 - Jan 2025

•       APAC: Consumers’ AI Trust by Activity Type, in % of Respondents, 2024

5.4          Regulation & Compliance

•       Asia: Cyber Defence, Identity Risk Management and Compliance Automation via AI, April 2025  

•       APAC: Financial Crime Regulation, Synthetic Identity Laundering, and AI Compliance Strategy, July 2025

6.           Competitive Landscape & Strategic AI Movement

6.1.        Market Scale & Activity

•       Asia: Funding for AI-Driven FinTech Companies, in USD billions, 2023-2025f

•       Asia: Number of AI-Driven FinTech Companies, in thous., in % of Total FinTech Comp., 2023, 2025e

•       Asia: Top Countries of AI FinTech Companies, in % of Total AI FinTech Companies, 2025

6.2.         Strategic Moves by Key Players

•       Asia: Cross-Border Integration, Market Entry, Strategic Exit and Global Partnerships via Alipay+, 2024

•       APAC: Visa AI Commerce, Mastercard Agent Pay, Shopper Trends, and Market Positioning, May 2025

7. AI Governance, Regulation & Innovation Enablers

7.1          Public & Private Sector AI Initiatives

•       Asia: Public & Private Drivers of AI Governance, Infrastructure and Experimentation in Finance, 2025

•       Asia: AI Sandboxes and Capacity-Building Programs in Four Economies, 2025

•       Asia: AI-Focused Regulatory Sandboxes and Innovation Hubs in Four Financial Markets, 2025 (1 of 2)

•       Asia: AI-Focused Regulatory Sandboxes and Innovation Hubs in Four Financial Markets, 2025 (2 of 2)

7.2          Regional AI Innovation Frameworks

•       Asia: AI Innovation Facilitators, Financial Inclusion, Regulatory Insight and Risk Management, 2025

•       Asia: Regulatory Frameworks for AI Innovation, Market Fit, Coordination, and Expertise, 2025

•       Asia: Design, Resource, and Oversight Barriers of AI Innovation Facilitators in Financial Markets, 2025

•       Asia: Development of AI Experimentation Platforms and Governance  Across Multiple Sect., 2025 (1 of 2)

•       Asia: Development of AI Experimentation Platforms and Governance  Across Multiple Sect., 2025 (2 of 2)

•       APAC: AI Strategy in Anti-Financial Crime, Predictive Capabilities, and Governance Priorities, July 2025

•       SEA: Infrastructure, Talent, and Regulatory Barriers Impacting AI Adoption, April 2025

•       SEA: Sectoral and Country-Level AI Contributions to Economic Growth, April 2025

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Companies Mentioned:

• Amazon
• Ant International / Alipay+
• Apple
• Auquan
• Cowbell Cyber
• Entera
• Enova
• GCash
• Grab
• Gynger
• HighRadius
• Internet Soft
• Kakao Pay
• Kensho (S&P Global)
• LINE Pay
• Lazada Group
• Lendbuzz
• Maya
• Microsoft
• Naver Pay
• NayaPay
• OpenRice
• PayPal
• Scienaptic AI
• Singapore’s COSMIC
• Socure
• Stripe
• SymphonyAI
• Tabs
• Temenos
• Tencent
• Touch 'n Go
• Toss Pay
• TrueMoney
• Visa
• Workiva
• Woori Card