Malaysia’s fintech sector is growing, but the more revealing story is what people are beginning to use it for, according to the latest Malaysia Fintech Report 2026.
For one, Malaysians made 18.4 billion e-payment transactions in 2025. Paying digitally is now routine, and the next phase goes well beyond payments.
Banks are testing tokenised deposits for cross-border payments and securities settlement. An open finance pilot involving seven banks and the Employees Provident Fund is exploring what happens when providers can see a person’s full financial picture, with consent from the consumer.
For certain players in the industry, growth comes at a cost. Four of Malaysia’s five digital banks reported wider losses in their latest financial year, even as they expanded their offerings.
The Malaysia Fintech Report 2026 maps these shifts and more, showing clarity on where the market is heading to next.
BNPL Reaches 7.5M Active Users, Everyday Use Grows
BNPL is increasingly being used for smaller, everyday purchases in Malaysia. Active account holders reached 7.5 million by 2025, more than double the 3.4 million recorded two years earlier, according to the Consumer Credit Commission.
In the second half of 2025 alone, Malaysians made 140.4 million BNPL transactions worth RM12 billion. Transaction volume rose 36.8% from the preceding six months, while value increased 29%.
The average transaction was RM85, with spending spanning food and dining, retail purchases, transportation and services. Consumers aged 30 and below accounted for around 40% of both transaction volume and value.
Despite having 16 providers, including four Shariah-compliant players, the market remained concentrated towards SPayLater, Atome, TikTok, and Grab PayLater. More than 95% of active users were spread across these four major BNPL schemes.
Outstanding balances reached RM4.9 billion by December 2025, although BNPL still represented just 0.3% of total household debt.
This expansion is also bringing closer oversight.
The report outlines new licensing and business conduct standards under the Consumer Credit Act 2025, placing greater responsibility on providers as instalment payments become a more routine way to spend.
Digital Banks Broaden Their Offerings as Customer Bases Grow
GXBank and AEON Bank both lead in terms of breadth of digital bank offerings in Malaysia, each offering seven out of the 10 retail and business products tracked in the report.
Commendably, GXBank has reached 1.4 million users as of May 2026. The bank is targeting to hit profitability by 2028 as its loan portfolio inched closer to RM1.21 billion as of September this year.
Ryt Bank, meanwhile, became the first bank to support Apple Pay, with 1.5 million users on its list as of August this year.
AEON Bank is expected to ease its digital bank losses in FY2027, in a recent statement by AEON Credit Service (M) Bhd from Daisuke Maeda. The bank launched AI Neko Sensei in June 2027, a financial coach feature delivered through its app.
Boost Bank is aiming for profitability in 2028. The bank has sealed a partnership with Funding Societies to enable property-backed SME financing, targeting asset-owning MSMEs and SMEs.
KAF Digital Bank has shared that it met BNM’s deadline to roll out basic banking services in April 2026. The bank now offers a savings account and a debit card.
5 Stablecoin and Tokenised Deposits Initiatives Are Underway
Back in February, Bank Negara Malaysia shared that it will trial ringgit stablecoins and tokenised deposits for wholesale payment use cases through its Digital Asset Innovation Hub (DAIH).
What has happened since, and what other developments are taking place?
The Malaysia Fintech Report 2026 lists five initiatives. CIMB, for one, has completed a pilot that used tokenised deposits to settle RM1.38 billion in tokenised sukuk (digital Islamic bonds).
Maybank, meanwhile, worked with Yinson to complete an on-chain payment in the ringgit and Singapore dollar corridor. The payment involved tokenised deposits, FX conversion, and a cross-border payment to Singapore.
The other three are ringgit stablecoin initiatives. Bullish Aim and Zetrix both operate JMYR, while BLOX‘s ringgit-backed MYRC stablecoin initiative recently raised US$1 million in seed funding.
Standard Chartered and Capital A, meanwhile, are working on real-world applications for stablecoin use.
Malaysia’s Fintech Map Hits 379 Companies in 2026
The report’s flagship fintech map for 2026 groups 379 companies across 14 categories compared to 360 companies in 2025.
Payments is by far the largest segment, with 85 companies (22%), followed by e-wallets with 43, lending with 35, and cross-border payments with 31 companies.
E-wallet and blockchain counts remained unchanged at 43 and 25 companies, respectively.
Meanwhile, digital banks slipped from 6 to 5 companies as the Be-U digital banking app by Bank Islam ceased operations in July 2026, concluding its incubation phase.
One QR Code for All of Malaysia by 2028, and More in the Report
Beyond the four areas above, the report examines how Malaysians pay, how businesses raise capital and the policies shaping the sector’s next phase.
The payments chapter tracks the rise in annual e-payment transactions per capita from 432 to 538 in 2025. DuitNow QR transaction volume doubled to 3 billion, while cross-border QR payments grew 179% to RM2.4 billion, supported by 29 live regional payment linkages.
It also examines the transition towards interoperable payments, with proprietary QR schemes due to be fully phased out by 30 June 2028 under the Interoperable Fund Transfer Framework.
Regulatory developments through July 2026 round out the picture, including announcements from Bank Negara Malaysia and the Securities Commission of Malaysia.
Other Resources You Might Be Interested In
Curious about other Asian fintech startup maps and reports? Here’s a handy guide looking at the fintech startup maps in Asia by country.
and the fintech startups report in Asia by country.
Featured image edited by Fintech News Malaysia based on an image by creativewizard on Magnific
