Antom, the merchant payment and digitisation services business of Ant International, announced the launch of a new all-in-one app called EPOS360, designed to support micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) by combining point-of-sale (POS) systems, payments, banking, lending and growth-support tools into a single AI-powered platform.
According to the company, EPOS360 allows merchants the capability to:
• Activate a POS system and accept cards and QR/e-wallet payments in-store and online.
• Set up an online store quickly (for instance via Google Maps or partner e-wallets) to drive omnichannel commerce.
• Open a business bank account and access financing (via Antom/ANEXT Bank) in minutes, sometimes with no collateral.
• Leverage an embedded AI “Copilot” which analyses business data (inventory, cash-flow, competition, promotions, weather/holiday effects) and makes actionable suggestions (e.g., adjust inventory, schedule promotions, manage cashflow) through built-in analytics.
• Initially roll out in Singapore within 2026, focusing on retail and food & beverage MSMEs; later expand into Malaysia (via Touch ’n Go mini app) and other Asian markets, with multilingual support (English, Chinese, Bahasa Malaysia, Thai, Japanese) and more to follow.
The context: Antom’s acquiring transaction volume (TPV) for non-Alipay users reportedly grew more than 70% year-on-year in the first ten months of 2025. By launching EPOS360, Antom is explicitly targeting the underserved MSME segment with a “digital SME transformation” proposition.
Implications for the Revenue & Fintech Industry
1. Revenue acceleration and monetisation for merchants
By giving MSMEs a unified platform to manage payments, store creation, marketing, inventory and financing, EPOS360 lowers friction for revenue generation. Merchants can onboard faster, take payments (cards/QR/wallets) immediately, launch online channels and run promotions all of which support revenue flows. For Antom/Ant International, each activation/transaction becomes potential revenue (via transaction fees, lending interest, value-added services). This approach enables a broader monetisation funnel beyond simple payments.
2. Consolidation of services and increased customer lifetime value (CLV)
Rather than separate tools for POS, payments, banking, online-store, marketing analytics and lending, EPOS360 bundles them. From a business point of view this means higher stickiness: once a merchant is inside the ecosystem, they are likely to adopt more services (cross-sell lending, analytics, storefront). This has clear positive implications for revenue models—not just from initial payments but recurring service/finance fees.
3. Enhanced operational insights driving efficiency and growth
The embedded AI Copilot provides insights (e.g., inventory adjustments, seasonal promotions, campaign optimisation) which can help MSMEs increase revenue per merchant and reduce cost. For the wider ecosystem, this means that analytics, data-driven decisions and AI-powered growth become embedded in merchant operations—raising the productivity of small businesses and expanding the revenue base for fintech providers.
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4. Expansion of addressable market and inclusion of underserved segments
MSMEs often face digital-service fragmentation, lack of financing, or slow onboarding. By offering a one-stop digital-finance + operations app, Antom is tapping into a large, previously under-monetised market. The article notes that in ASEAN, MSMEs contribute ~44.8% to GDP. This opens a large revenue opportunity for the fintech/payment provider: more merchants, more transactions, more ancillary financial services.
5. Broader ecosystem effects on fintech, payments and commerce
From a business sector perspective, this kind of integrated app sets a benchmark for how payment/fintech providers can move beyond transaction volume to full-stack growth ecosystems. For merchants, it means differentiation: operators who adopt fully digital ecosystems may generate revenue faster and with lower cost, which could widen the gap between digitally-enabled MSMEs and traditional ones. For competitors, this raises the bar in payments + value-added services: payments alone may no longer suffice—bundled services and analytics will be differentiators.
Considerations & Challenges
While the launch is promising, businesses operating in the merchant-payments/fintech sector should keep in mind:
• Localisation: The initial rollout is Singapore-centric, and scaling across diverse markets (India, Indonesia, Malaysia, etc) will require language, regulation, payment-method, and merchant behaviour adaptation.
• Regulatory/credit risk: Offering financing (instant loans up to S$5,000) to MSMEs implies underwriting risk and potential loss. How risk models are built and managed will impact the revenue model.
• Data/privacy/security: With an AI co-pilot drawing from several data streams (inventory, cashflow, competitor data, weather/holiday triggers), managing data privacy, merchant consent and security will be critical.
• Merchant uptake/education: MSMEs may need training to adopt and fully utilise such platforms; adoption speed and active usage will drive revenue outcomes.
Conclusion
Antom’s EPOS360 represents a meaningful step in the evolution of how payments, finance and operational tools merge into one platform for MSMEs. For the revenue/fintech industry, it signals a shift from transaction-centric services to fully integrated growth ecosystems. For merchants, especially small businesses, it offers a powerful opportunity to streamline operations, access finance and grow revenue faster. As the rollout expands beyond Singapore into ASEAN and beyond, the support of digital-finance platforms like this may become a major driver of revenue growth and efficiency in the MSME sector—and in turn reshape how fintech and payment providers monetise their merchant base.
