SINGAPORE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov 6, 2025--
Ant International’s WorldFirst, an all-in-one digital cross-border payment and treasury account service for global businesses, has announced a partnership with OCBC, the second largest financial services group in Southeast Asia.
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Under a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed on 29 October 2025, WorldFirst and OCBC committed to a strategic collaboration aimed at supporting WorldFirst’s base of 1.2 million SME customers to conduct cross-border trade across Southeast Asia and manage international payments in a simpler and more cost-effective manner.
This is timely as trade flows between Greater China and Southeast Asia continue to grow, deepening the need for a more resilient cross-border payment ecosystem for SMEs.
OCBC currently works with WorldFirst to power its World Account in Singapore and Hong Kong. Under the MOU, this will be extended to Malaysia and Indonesia, which are OCBC’s core markets and key markets of interest to SMEs.
With WorldFirst’s World Account, SMEs can collect in 14 major currencies – including SGD, USD, CNH, HKD, EUR, GBP, AUD, JPY, CAD, NZD, CHF, SEK, DKK, NOK. The World Account also supports payments in 100+ currencies across 210+ countries and regions, along with integrated FX and other treasury services, delivering a comprehensive cross-border payments and cash management solution.
SMEs that are OCBC customers can also enjoy fee-free transfers from their OCBC accounts into the World Account, making international payments more cost-efficient than before.
Clara SHI, Vice President of Ant International and CEO of WorldFirst, stated: “The deepened partnership with OCBC is a key step in strengthening WorldFirst’s regional financial network. By integrating OCBC’s market-leading presence in Southeast Asia, we can better support local SMEs with compelling benefits. We look forward to unlocking further opportunities with OCBC to deliver more efficient, accessible, and innovative financial services across the Southeast Asia.”
Melvyn LOW, Head of Global Transaction Banking, OCBC said: “We are glad to strengthen our partnership with Ant International and WorldFirst. Together, we share a strong commitment to empowering SMEs across Southeast Asia with powerful, cost-effective financial solutions that support their growth and ambitions. By combining our strengths, we aim to accelerate the growth of the region’s digital economy and contribute meaningfully to Southeast Asia’s broader economic development.”
In 2025, WorldFirst accelerates its SEA expansion with an official launch in Thailand and the obtaining of MSB licence in Malaysia, with the OCBC partnership further strengthening its service capabilities for SMEs in the region.
About WorldFirst
WorldFirst offers cross-border payments and treasury services through its global business account, empowering growth for SMEs in e-commerce, trade, and the broader platform economy. WorldFirst simplifies key financial operations, including international payments, collections, currency conversions, and treasury management, all in a one-stop account. Leveraging the technological strengths of its parent company, Ant International, WorldFirst delivers industry-leading transaction security and reliability. WorldFirst has supported over 1.2 million customers, enabling payments in 100+ currencies across more than 210 countries and regions. Learn more about WorldFirst at https://www.worldfirst.com.
Clara SHI, Vice President of Ant International and CEO of WorldFirst, and Melvyn LOW, Head of Global Transaction Banking at OCBC, signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) in Singapore.
Illinois’ Brad Underwood coached for 26 years before landing his first Division I head coaching job.
Now in Year 39, the well-traveled 62-year-old is finally heading to the Final Four, where the Fighting Illini meet UConn on Saturday.
He’s doing it in what he’s long referred to as his dream job. In 2013 while in that first DI head coaching job at Stephen F. Austin, he told his administrative assistant about his ambition to coach the Fighting Illini one day. And she wrote it down.
When he was named Illinois coach in 2017, she presented him with that meaningful piece of paper containing his intention to lead this team.
In the place he always wanted to be, Underwood has the Fighting Illini in the Final Four for the first time since 2005, trying to bring home a first national title.
“I’ve been fortunate to be around great mentors, great coaches,” he said. “I just bided my time, found a group that’s magical. We’re living the dream.”
Though he’s living the dream now, it came only after decades of toiling in relative obscurity.
There were four years at Dodge City Community College starting in 1988 where he was not only the coach but the team’s bus driver for road games. Then came 10 years as an assistant for Jim Kerwin at Western Illinois, where he was “not making very much money and raising three kids and literally being gone five days a week.”
The next stop was Daytona Beach Community College from 2003-06, which also was not the most glamorous job but had a nice perk.
“It was an incredible place to help raise our kids, going to the beach every weekend," he said. "And I loved coaching ball in junior college.”
After that he worked as an assistant, first for Bob Huggins followed by Frank Martin, at Kansas State from 2006-12. He followed Martin to South Carolina, where he spent one season before landing at Stephen F. Austin.
“I’ve been blessed along the way because I’ve worked for nothing but winners for head coaches and people who allowed me to grow,” Underwood said.
At Stephen F. Austin he was named Southland Conference coach of the year in each of his three seasons. The Lumberjacks won the league tournament to advance to the NCAA Tournament every year under him.
He spent one season at Oklahoma State, where he went 20-13 and led the Cowboys to March Madness before landing his coveted job in 2017.
After three seasons building the team, he turned the Fighting Illini into perennial NCAA Tournament contenders. This is their sixth straight season in the tournament and the second time in three years that they have advanced to the Sweet 16.
“It’s been maybe a different path than most, but one that I sure wouldn’t — there’s not one step of it that I would give up,” he said. “Because I’ve been beyond blessed to work for great people who helped prepare me to get to these moments.”
His success this season comes after he began prioritizing recruiting in Eastern Europe. The Illini have a roster that includes four players from Eastern Europe and Andrej Stojakovic, who was born in Greece but whose father is Serbian three-time NBA All-Star Peja Stojakovic.
The squad is led by consensus second-team All-American point guard Keaton Wagler. The freshman scored 25 points in a win over Iowa to earn South Region tournament MVP and punch the Fighting Illini’s ticket to the Final Four.
Wagler said he knew soon after meeting Underwood that Illinois was the school for him.
“He’s super competitive and that’s what I like about him,” Wagler said. “He hates to lose. I hate to lose. So, it just combined really well. Just talking to him just throughout the whole recruiting process, I knew that this was the place I wanted to be.”
Underwood got emotional as he was cutting down the net after the victory over the Hawkeyes. So many years and all those stops brought him right where he was supposed to be.
Now he’s just two wins away from bringing Illinois to heights never seen before.
“You believe in something so much that it drives me every single day to want to make it happen,” he said.
AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
Illinois coach Brad Underwood listens to an official during a timeout to fix a broken horn during the first half of an Elite Eight game against Iowa in the NCAA college basketball tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Illinois coach Brad Underwood celebrates with players after an Elite Eight game against Iowa in the NCAA college basketball tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Illinois' Brad Underwood, center, celebrates with players after an Elite Eight game against Iowa in the NCAA college basketball tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
Illinois coach Brad Underwood celebrates after Illinois beat Iowa in an Elite Eight game in the NCAA college basketball tournament Saturday, March 28, 2026, in Houston. (AP Photo/Ashley Landis)
