iFast among 5 SGX-listed firms on Forbes Asia's Best Under A Billion list

Home-grown fintech platform iFast has made it to the latest Forbes Asia's Best Under A Billion list, buoyed by growing wealth in the region.

- Cheong Poh Kwan

It is one of five companies listed on the Singapore Exchange (SGX) that earned a spot on the 2025 list, which recognises 200 top-performing small and mid-cap firms in the Asia-Pacific with annual sales ranging from over US$10 million (S$12.9 million) to under US$1 billion.

The others are local bourse SGX itself, accommodation provider Centurion, luxury yacht builder Grand Banks Yachts, and credit and risk information provider Credit Bureau Asia (CBA).

Leading the pack on the Forbes list are China, with 30 companies, and India, with 29.

The 200 companies on the unranked list were chosen from more than 19,000 firms in 17 territories.

They are assessed using a composite scoring system based on debt levels, sales and earnings-per-share growth over both the most recent fiscal one- and three-year periods, as well as the strongest one- and five-year average return on equity.

State-controlled firms, subsidiaries of larger companies, and those with serious governance issues and legal troubles were excluded.