Bank–FinTech cooperation: what the empirical evidence reveals in Asia–Pacific countries

Purpose This paper provides a structured integrative review of the literature on bank–FinTech cooperation in the Asia-Pacific countries, organizing evidence across interaction modes and multi-actor configurations through which digital financial services are produced, distributed and governed in emerging markets in the Asia-Pacific region. Design/methodology/approach We analyzed 204 peer-reviewed articles published between 2015 and 2024; using structured qualitative content coding and bibliometric mapping (co-citation and keyword; analysis). This combined approach identifies the main research streams and clarifies how prior studies conceptualize cooperation, risk, and institutional context. Findings The review identified three core research clusters: (1) the impact of bank–FinTech cooperation on bank performance, efficiency, and risk-taking, (2) regulatory arbitrage, shadow banking, and implications for prudential supervision and (3) organizational transformation and business-model reconfiguration within financial institutions. A distinctive finding is the centrality of Asia-Pacific evidence, particularly from China, which currently provides the primary empirical basis for claims regarding how FinTech integration affects incumbents' profitability, credit allocation and systemic risk in emerging financial systems. Overall, the evidence reveals a structural tension: bank–FinTech cooperation may improve efficiency and service innovation, but it may also shift risks outside the traditional regulatory perimeter, increase platform dependence and create new supervisory challenges. Practical implications The review helps bank managers assess cooperation modes not only in terms of innovation access and cost efficiency but also about data control, operational dependence and long-term competitive exposure. For regulators and policymakers, interdependencies among banks, FinTech firms, BigTech platforms must be monitored. Originality/value This study offers a structured integrative synthesis of fragmented research on bank – FinTech cooperation. Its novelty lies in connecting three bodies of evidence that are usually examined separately: performance and efficiency effects, regulatory arbitrage and risk migration, and organizational transformation. By interpreting these streams through an ecosystem perspective, this study clarifies how firm-level cooperation modes relate to broader issues of competition, financial stability, risk allocation and regulatory design. Targeted directions for comparative research across institutional contexts are also identified.