SINGAPORE -- A Hong Kong-based private equity fund led by a former Alibaba executive is ramping up its bets on Southeast Asia's financial technology sector, pushing to help promising startups become so-called unicorns by reaching valuations of over $1 billion. Founded just over a year ago, 01Fintech recently joined Marshall Wace of the U.K., one of the world's largest hedge fund managers, and U.S. venture capital company Bessemer Venture Partners in a Series C fundraising round by Singapore-based cross-border payments network startup Thunes.