A new deal-making platform rolled out for this year's Singapore FinTech Festival has underlined the huge demand from investors seeking a stake in financial technology innovations.

As much as US$12 billion could be pumped into start-ups and growth stage enterprises in ASEAN over the next three years.

There were 380 participating investors who enrolled for the Singapore FinTech Festival's deal-making platform called MATCH (Meet ASEAN's Talents and Champions), and these investors have indicated their intentions to invest in the region of US$6.2 billion in ASEAN enterprises next year. An additional US$6 billion has also been designated for the subsequent two years, according to a report from The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

MATCH is a new component of the 2018 FinTech Festival platform that selects and matches promising next-generation ASEAN enterprises with global private equity and venture capital.

The connection exercise for enterprises and investors was conducted from May to September 2018. To facilitate deal-making, MAS and Ernst & Young co-hosted the inaugural Deal Day on 5 October 2018, which saw more than 400 curated meetings to introduce enterprises to prospective investors. Beyond Deal Day, Ernst & Young continues to connect investors with enterprises that fit their investment profile.

More than 17,000 matches were generated between the 380 participating investors and 840 enterprises. FinTech, healthcare, and medical technology, as well as the information and communications technology sectors have proved to be the biggest draw for investors.

The deal-making platform, driven by Ernst & Young, has built on the success of the Singapore FinTech Festival's Investor Summit 2017 by expanding the scope of the deal-making platform to sectors beyond fintech.

The 2017 Singapore Fintech Festival Deal Day saw US$2 billion of capital secured for the growth stage enterprises and start-ups. More than 1,000 fintech start-ups and 400 investors indicated interest in participating in the process and 525 connections were made among interested parties.

"The 2018 MATCH exercise demonstrates the upward momentum in both the supply of and demand for growth capital in ASEAN. The interest of the global investment community in our region is promising," says Jacqueline Loh, deputy managing director, MAS.

Singapore FinTech Festival, sometimes referred to as The Davos of FinTech, is the world's largest fintech festival and global platform for the fintech community.

The 2017 event pulled in more than 30,000 participants, which was comprised of fintech players, technopreneurs, policy makers, financial industry leaders, investors including private equity players and venture capitalists, and academics.

This year's event is expected to attract even bigger crowds. As a supporting media partner, The Asset will be reporting each day from the event.