The success of digital payments at local 7-Eleven stores via MOLPay has proven that such transactions may soon be a lot more commonplace. There are currently over 2,000 7-Eleven stores across Malaysia, making it a more convenient payment solution for all segments of users. MOLPay is not limited to students only but also open to all bank account holders, credit and debit card users, as well as those who only make payments with cash. “UKM realized their students required convenience and flexibility when making payments for their tuition fees and miscellaneous expenses,” said Eng Sheng Guan, Chief Executive Officer of MOLPay. “MOLPay’s partnership…
Author: Fintech News Malaysia
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An additional 17 banks and non-banks will soon launch the DuitNow service as well. Customers wishing to receive DuitNow fund transfers using their mobile number need only perform a simple one-time registration to link their mobile number with their account number at their bank. Customers may also link their MyKad or MyPR Identity Card numbers, Army or Police numbers, Passport numbers or Business Registration numbers to their bank accounts in order to receive money. “It is extremely heartening that millions of Malaysians have already registered for DuitNow to receive funds using their mobile number and MyKad numbers” said Mr Peter…
The Open Vault, the FinTech and Innovation unit of OCBC Bank has been officially unveiled in Malaysia. Back in its home ground, its Singaporean counterpart has been known to launch several initiatives such as their mortgage loan chatbot EMMA, a dedicated unit for Artificial Intelligence and robo-investment services. It is unclear whether The Open Vault in Malaysia will pursue similar strategies or the team will focus on issues that are more specific to market conditions in Malaysia. What seems to be clear is however, the launch of OCBC Malaysia’s fintech innovation arm will see the bank forging more partnerships with fintech…
To implement the regulatory framework on digital assets—be it tokens or cryptocurrency—the Bank Negara (BNM) and the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) will enter into coordination arrangements to ensure compliance with laws and regulations under the purview of both regulators. The SC is currently working on regulations to bring digital assets within the remit of securities law, in a bid to promote fair and orderly trading and ensure investor protection. This effectively means that the SC will regulate issuances of digital assets via initial coin offerings (ICO) and the trading of digital assets at digital asset exchanges in Malaysia. In addition, ICO issuers and digital asset exchanges are…
CIMB Bank unveiled its first Digital Lounge in Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon), along with the OCTO by CIMB mobile banking app for consumers. Ho Chi Minh City hosts CIMB Bank Vietnam’s first branch following the establishment of its headquarters in Hanoi in 2016. The launch also marks the beginning of CIMB Vietnam’s digital banking proposition, inaugurated by the OCTO app which offers round-the-clock mobile banking. Representatives from the State Bank of Vietnam witnessed the digital lounge launch, along with the Consulate General of Malaysia and Malaysia External Trade Development Corporation based in Ho Chi Minh City. Tengku Dato’ Sri…
Jirnexu just received a US$10 million in its second Series B investment (RM41.7 million), bringing its total funding up to US$27 million. Jirnexu is known for operating RinggitPlus, one of the well-known comparison platforms for products like credit cards, loans and insurance. Jirnexu gains its investment from Experian, a consumer credit information company which aims to help users manage their financial data, and also utilises the investing in startups strategy to stay ahead. Experian should be providing Jirnexu with better eligibility matching via analytics, and higher performance in demand generation, as the company attempts to build a more user-friendly consumer-facing product.…
During the announcement of Supercharger’s second Malaysian cohort, the organisation also announced the creation of a fintech specialisation that will be offered to students taking a Bachelor’s in Banking and Finance. The course will be run in partnership with Asia Pacific University. The module will be taught in the first quarter of 2019. Supercharger wants to supply the local fintech scene with a steady stream of talent that is already familiar with the latest technologies as they enter the job market, which would presumably help often agile startup-level companies to bring their business to the next level—and with a reduced onboarding…
Golden Gate Ventures, today announced the opening its Malaysian office in Kuala Lumpur. Having already utilised a quarter of its Fund II in early-stage tech companies that are based in or operating in Malaysia, the firm now plans to invest another MYR75 million (US$18 million) to help back Malaysian based start-ups. Golden Gate Ventures Managing Partner Vinnie Lauria explained that the firm’s expansion into Malaysia was done to solidify its on-the-ground presence there. “Several factors make this country an excellent place for technology start-ups”, said Lauria. “We already have good Malaysian tech companies in our portfolio and we want to…
Earlier this month, Country Heights received the green light from their investors to pursue an ICO, which for now is tentatively named the Horse Coin. This cryptocurrency—if launched—will mainly be a utility or reward token, and be backed by actual physical assets owned by Country Heights Country Heights is a known developer in Malaysia with properties located mainly in the Kajang area, and responsible for known names like the Palace of Golden Horses. The properties in the area are often high value, and the company seemingly has aspirations towards being the “Beverly Hills of Malaysia”. The group has similarly ambitious…
Petronas just announced the launch of Setel, an e-payment solution geared towards fuel purchases directly from mobile devices. The app is designed to integrate directly with the fuel pumps, which would allow customers to purchase fuel with a few taps. Iskandar Ezzahuddin, Head of Setel said: “Pumping fuel shouldn’t be a chore. Currently, the payment process involves walking to cashier, waiting in line, a RM200-hold on your cards, and having to use a separate card to earn loyalty points. Setel eradicates these pain points and integrates payment and loyalty benefits in a seamless, frictionless experience.” Setel is an end-to-end solution and is…
Western Union has launched online money transfers in Malaysia, where recipients can opt to cash out digitally, or at cashout agents at one of Western Union’s international retail network. This expansion is part of Western Union’s bid to expand its digital footprint across the world. Malaysia was one of 50 countries and territories that Western Union launched in. Customers can send up to RM3,000 per day and fund their transactions online from their local internet banking accounts with FPX (Financial Process Exchange) participating banks. The services are available to Malaysians around the clock, and also offers functions like estimating fees…
The current property buying process in Malaysia is broken. Let’s say you want to purchase a property, you usually begin the process by looking at areas that you like or developers that you trust. After what is likely several months of finding that one home that is perfect for you, you go through the process of applying for a mortgage loan. Chances are many first-home buyers will either have their loans rejected or offered loan rates that are not favourable to them. This is problematic because, you’ll have restart the entire process again. Beyond just being a huge disappointment for…
Between insurance to credit card comparison sites, the realms of e-commerce have long gone beyond just Singles Day sales and ventured into avenues that used to require an agent and hidden fees. It seems like Mudah.my is attempting to jump onto this bandwagon. The online marketplace has inked a partnership with Lendela, a Singapore-based loan comparison company, to offer their services on the Mudah.my platform. With the partnership, customers are able to apply for loans directly on Mudah. Lendela uses a combination of customer details and direct integration with different lending sources as part of its algorithm. The goal is to…
MoneyMatch was recognised as one of three winners for the ASEAN SME category of the SG FinTech Awards in conjunction with the Singapore FinTech Festival 2018 from 12 – 16 November 2018. The FinTech Awards ceremony was witnessed by close to 40,000 attendees who attended the week-long annual international fintech gathering hosted by Monetary Authority of Singapore in collaboration with the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS). Other winners in the ASEAN SME category include fintech startups from Indonesia and Thailand. MoneyMatch was the only fintech startup representing Malaysia from a total of 40 shortlisted finalists, due to their win…
CIMB Group and Ripple have entered into a strategic collaboration to enable instant cross border payments across its various markets. On the back of this partnership, CIMB will join Ripple’s network RippleNet, which will facilitate access to other RippleNet members and allow CIMB to grow its cross-border payments business. This news follows MoneyMatch’s earlier completion of their first cross-border blockchain transaction via Ripple. Ripple’s blockchain-based solution has been deployed to enhance Speedsend, CIMB’s proprietary remittance product. This will expand CIMB’s SpeedSend network and open new payment corridors to improve consumer access to cross-border remittances, both inbound into ASEAN and outbound…
Singapore-based equity crowdfunding platform Fundnel has expanded to Malaysia. The announcement follows Fundnel’s appointment as a Recognised Market Operator by the Securities Commission Malaysia. Fundnel Malaysia aims to provide a comprehensive suite of capital raising services, targeted at local unlisted growth companies that form the backbone of the economy. This will include everyday businesses from the mom and pop cafés and retail stores to larger companies in the fields of education and wellness. The company claims to adopt a technology and data driven approach to connect quality businesses with growth capital, “The global economy is increasingly being shaped by SMEs,…
Telekom Malaysia Berhad, through its business solutions arm, TM ONE, recently hosted an Artificial Intelligence Trade Mission from the UK at the TM ONE Experience Centre, in collaboration with the Department for International Trade (DIT) of British High Commissioner(BHC). 9 UK-based technology companies with various expertise in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cybersecurity, Data Analytics and Predictive Technology were part of the delegation. The companies are looking to expand their reach to the Malaysian market by establishing collaborative engagements with Malaysian enterprises and government agencies. By leveraging on TM’s business rapport in the Enterprise and Public Sector, the collaborations to be established…
The information gap between financial investors in the capital market can create an unfair game of lottery for those who are not privy to organised and reliable data. Comprehensive financial access and tools can be expensive, financial data disorganised and information obtained from public figures questionable. Enter Stockbit, a fintech startup hailing from Indonesia, it recently launched their services in Malaysia to connect stock investors in a more reliable manner, while providing access to timely and transparent financial information via a one stop social networking platform. A Service Designed for First-Time and Veteran Investors In 2017, Malaysia saw its capital…
Of all of Budget 2019’s announcements, its peer-to-peer homeownership section has been the product of biggest contention. The FundMyHome scheme, which came surprisingly quickly following the budget’s announcement seems to be a very specific and very convenient extension of the budget announcement—raising the hackles and suspicion. Concerned netizens have pointed out that FundMyHome has similar language to that of Budget 2019’s homeownership proposal, but it’s important to clarify that they may end up completely different altogether. For one thing, Putrajaya’s approach is to issue a framework, which will only be launched in 2019, following discussions with the National House Buyers Association (HBA) before implementation. The HBA previously expressed concern…
During the Budget 2019 speech, YB Lim Guan Eng, Finance Minister, stated that Securities Commission Malaysia will be coming up with a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies, though not much details beyond the fact that it will be gazetted in 2019. Seeking clarification we reached out to Securities Commission Malaysia to get further details on the matter. In statement issued to Fintech News Malaysia, Securities Commission Malaysia confirms that they are indeed developing a regulatory framework for both ICOs and digital asset exchanges which will come into effect in the 1st quarter of 2019. The statement also indicates that the regulator also…