Two Malaysian fintech companies’ co-founders and CEOs received the ASEAN FinTech Leaders awards at the recent Singapore Fintech Festival (SFF) Global FinTech Awards 2022.
They were Eddy Wong Kok Hoe, Co-Founder, CEO, and Managing Director of VSure Group; and Salim Dhanani, Co-Founder and CEO of BigPay.
This is a momentous achievement for the Malaysian fintech scene, with Eddy and Salim taking home two of the four ASEAN FinTech Leader Awards.
VSure Group
VSure Group claims to be the country’s first insurtech company to have secured approval from Bank Negara Malaysia to introduce on-demand insurance and protection plans for the masses.
The company has developed a suite of products that help insurance companies to streamline their operations, improve customer service, and better manage risk.
In a bid to embrace the norm of digital-first and going paperless, the company’s protection plans are available exclusively on digital platforms via its website or the VSure mobile app.
The award is a testament to the company’s dedication to providing innovative solutions that help insurance companies meet the needs of modern customers.
BigPay
BigPay is a digital payments platform in Malaysia that offers a suite of financial services, including a mobile wallet, prepaid card, and remittance.
With BigPay, users can get a BigPay Card to make it easier to make payments both online and offline. The BigPay account also comes with other features, such as spending worldwide with the BigPay Card.
The company has been on a mission to make financial services more accessible and affordable for everyone.
The SFF Global Fintech Awards
The SFF Global FinTech Awards is a recognition of the outstanding fintech solutions that have the potential to transform the financial landscape and improve the lives of consumers and businesses.
The theme for this year’s SFF Global FinTech Awards was “Embracing Digital, Charting the New Normal,” whereby SFA received 223 submissions across all nine award categories, of which 48 finalists were shortlisted.
The winners were selected by a distinguished panel of judges comprising industry leaders, investors, and experts.
“We are very encouraged by the innovative, cutting-edge solutions presented by the winners and finalists of this year’s Global FinTech Hackcelerator and FinTech Awards. The winning entries have demonstrated strong potential to tackle real-world problems while allowing the financial sector to harness the tremendous benefits of new technologies in their journey towards a greener digital future. Our heartiest congratulations to all the winners of the Global FinTech Awards,”
said Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of MAS.
Malaysia charting new growth in the fintech sector
The Malaysian government supports the fintech industry and has introduced several initiatives to promote its growth. As a result, Malaysia’s number of fintech startups has increased significantly in recent years.
Malaysia has chartered new growth in the fintech sector and grew by 27 percent in 2021 to 294 fintech companies. Payments still dominate the industry, with 60 companies, followed by lending (55), e-wallets (43), and insurtech (31).
According to the Fintech in ASEAN 2021: Digital Takes Flight report by United Overseas Bank (UOB), fintech companies in Malaysia raised a record RM555.16 million (US$117 million) in funding, surpassing 2020’s total of RM365.37 million (US$77 million) by 52 percent in the first three quarters of 2021.
These SFF Global FinTech awards are a significant achievement for the Malaysian fintech industry, which clearly signifies that we are on the right track in our quest to become a leading fintech hub in Southeast Asia.
