Anuar Fariz Fadzil will step down as MDEC CEO on 2 October 2026 after deciding not to renew his two-year contract. MDEC announced that he plans to pursue new opportunities outside the agency. From 2025 to August 2026, MDEC reported that it had secured close to RM180 billion in digital investments from more than 1,000 Malaysia Digital (MD) status companies. These investments are expected to generate more than 42,000 high-value jobs for Malaysians. During his tenure, Anuar focused the agency’s performance measures on jobs, exports, revenue and investments. He also prepared MDEC for its responsibilities under the Malaysia Digital 2030…
Author: Fintech News Malaysia
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Embedded finance has settled into the region’s everyday digital life. Payments, credit and wallets now sit inside platforms customers use for something else entirely. What has not settled is who captures the value. The platform owns the journey and the data. Someone further back supplies the licence, the balance sheet and the underlying infrastructure and carries the risk when something goes wrong. Both sides claim the customer, and the economics between them are still being renegotiated deal by deal. The competitive picture is also shifting. Some platforms have stopped partnering for banking capability and started acquiring it. Some fintechs are…
Gkash now connects directly to Payments Network Malaysia (PayNet) for its DuitNow QR, MyDebit and FPX payment services. As a direct participant, the Malaysian payment provider can handle supported transactions with fewer intermediary layers. The arrangement also gives Gkash greater control over payment integration and transaction operations. The change affects the infrastructure Gkash uses to serve merchants in stores and online. DuitNow QR supports payments through participating banks and e-wallets, MyDebit handles debit card payments, and FPX enables online banking payments. Gkash expects the direct connection to help it manage growing transaction volumes and improve service reliability. The company also…
Ryt Bank and foodpanda Malaysia want to make splitting the cost of group food orders easier. The companies are exploring how foodpanda’s Group Order feature could work with Ryt Bank’s Ryt Groups feature. The aim is to make it easier for customers to place group orders and settle shared expenses. Ryt Bank did not say when the features might be connected or explain how they would work together. The partnership will also explore payments, rewards, merchant initiatives and financial literacy programmes for delivery partners. Featured image: Edited by Fintech News Malaysia, based on image by Ryt Bank via…
Vircle has taken its children’s payment app beyond schools with a new DuitNow QR feature. Scan & Pay for Kids lets children use the Vircle app on their phones to pay at merchants accepting DuitNow QR. A parent must first create and activate the child’s account. Parents can set spending limits, see transactions as they happen and freeze the account from their own phones. Children can receive money from their parent or send it to another verified child on Vircle. “Parents are not asking to control every purchase their child makes. They are asking to be in the picture. Children…
MBSB Bank has expanded its Wise-powered international transfer service from 12 to 20 currencies. The added currencies include the Vietnamese dong, Canadian dollar and UAE dirham. Existing customers can access GET through MBSB Bank’s MJourney app and web platform. GET allows customers to transfer up to RM150,000 a day. It shows exchange rates and costs upfront and lets users track transfers in real time. MBSB Bank reported that GET transaction volumes grew 250% in 2026 compared with 2025. Based on average daily activity, the number of unique users more than doubled. The bank also recorded a repeat transaction rate of…
Jelawang Capital has named former Sea Malaysia chief Howard Soh as its next CEO, effective 1 October 2026. Soh joins from Asia-based investment firm LemmaTree, where he was Group Chief Investment Officer. He brings two decades of investment, venture building and operating experience in Malaysia and Southeast Asia. He was previously Director, Investments at Ekuinas and founded and led the early Malaysian operations of Lazada, Zalora and Foodpanda. Jelawang Capital is a wholly owned subsidiary of Khazanah Nasional and serves as Malaysia’s national fund of funds. It forms part of Khazanah’s RM1 billion Dana Impak commitment. Jelawang Capital Chairman Datuk…
Innov8tif is preparing to support Malaysia’s New Generation MyKad as businesses adjust to the redesigned identity card. The identity verification provider plans to roll out the first phase of its updated system in early October to support the new MyKad format during electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) checks. The New Generation MyKad introduces changes to the card’s design and security features. Organisations that rely on MyKad verification may need to update their systems to accommodate the new format. The rollout has already exposed compatibility issues across some digital financial services. Earlier tests found that the new MyKad could not be…
Islamic finance needs to move beyond traditional financing models to support more complex and capital-intensive industries, according to Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM). Governor Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said the country’s next phase of growth will require more specialised financing for areas such as advanced manufacturing, technology-intensive activities and the energy transition. These sectors often involve longer investment horizons, larger upfront capital needs and higher technology and execution risks. Despite national efforts to develop higher-value industries, financing remains concentrated in services, while manufacturing funding is still modest relative to the investment required. Islamic Finance Takes on a Bigger Role Abdul Rasheed noted…
Luno, Halogen Capital and Kenanga Investors are exploring a Ringgit-pegged stablecoin for settling tokenised fund transactions. The proposed stablecoin, UMYR, would be fully backed by Ringgit and used as an on-chain settlement instrument for tokenised money market funds. Luno operates as a recognised market operator for digital asset exchange activities, while Halogen Capital and Kenanga Investors hold Capital Markets Services Licences. The initiative will test real-time delivery-versus-payment settlement for fund subscriptions and redemptions, which could shorten settlement periods compared with conventional payment rails. Under the proposal, UMYR would be issued through a ring-fenced entity within the Luno group. It would…
AFFIN has launched the LuminouSITI Visa Debit Card with lifestyle perks linked to Siti Nurhaliza. The card offers benefits across entertainment, beauty and shopping, including 20% discounts on selected SimplySiti and AFIYA products. Cardholders can also receive a 20% discount on tickets to Siti Nurhaliza’s Gema Bumantara concert on 17 October 2026 at TM Stadium Nasional Bukit Jalil, along with a lifetime waiver on annual debit card fees. AFFIN will offer 1,000 SimplySiti makeup palettes to customers who open an AFFIN LuminouSITI SA/-i account at Menara AFFIN @ TRX between 23 and 25 September 2026, subject to availability and applicable…
Perbadanan Insurans Deposit Malaysia (PIDM) is strengthening bank resolution preparedness through a new framework, a PayNet agreement and data-driven financial insights. The measures were announced during PIDM’s Industry Dialogue with member banks. The Resolvability Assessment Framework, or RAF, sets clearer expectations for banks and supports more structured engagement on resolution preparedness. PIDM also signed a cooperation agreement with Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) to help maintain access to critical payment infrastructure if a member institution enters resolution. Its third initiative, Data Pulse, provides insights into household financial wellbeing, savings and resilience to support policy development and broader financial system…
Ryt Bank has extended its 4% p.a. interest campaign until 1 February 2027 and its 1.2% overseas cashback campaign until 31 December 2026. Both offers were previously due to end on 30 September 2026. Eligible customers can earn up to 4% p.a. on funds held in Save Pockets through a combination of base and bonus interest. The additional interest is unlocked through qualifying spending and payment activities. Ryt Card customers can also continue earning unlimited 1.2% cashback on eligible overseas transactions through the end of the year. The extensions form part of Ryt Bank’s first anniversary activities, which also include…
CTOS Digital has detected unauthorised access to a system supporting its consumer business, with a limited subset of processed consumer information accessed. The company disclosed that it had contained the affected system and appointed an independent incident response team to conduct a forensic investigation in a Bursa Malaysia filing. Based on the assessment received so far, the incident was limited to the identified system and did not affect other environments. CTOS added that its systems remain secure and operational. The investigation found that certain data files containing processed consumer information had been accessed. CTOS did not disclose how many consumers…
Southeast Asia’s first ceramic credit card uses the same zirconia as luxury watches, and there is no application form. The card chooses you. Andrew Jong, Managing Director of Personal Financial Services at Hong Leong Bank, and Atul Singh, Global Head of Distribution at Giesecke+Devrient (G+D), join Vincent Fong to talk through HLB opus, the invitation-only card Hong Leong launched on Visa’s new Infinite Privilege tier.
Mastercard and GXBank say the first 60 days after opening an account can play a major role in whether customers develop lasting financial habits. Their research found that early engagement, savings discipline and trust in data security were stronger indicators of progress towards financial health than income or demographic factors. The study analysed pseudonymised transaction data from more than 39,000 GXBank customers in Malaysia over 12 months, alongside insights from three focus groups. Active customers increased their use of digital banking services during their first two months, with debit card transactions rising 250%. QR payments increased 119%, peer-to-peer payments 139%…
Boost has tapped Tencent Cloud to strengthen its technology infrastructure across Malaysia and Indonesia. The collaboration will cover cloud services, AI development and super app technology. Tencent Cloud will provide Infrastructure-as-a-Service capabilities to help Boost manage its cloud infrastructure and support future expansion. Boost will also use Tencent Cloud Super App as a Service to bring more financial services into a single digital platform for consumers and businesses. The companies will also work together on Boost’s AI roadmap, including co-developing products and using existing Tencent Cloud offerings. Poshu Yeung, Senior Vice President of Tencent Cloud and Head of Tencent Cloud…
TNG eWallet now has 8.5 million GOfinance users as its financial services platform continues to grow beyond payments. The figure was recorded as of 31 August 2026 and represents year-on-year growth of about 22%, according to TNG Digital. GOfinance has reportedly maintained double-digit growth since 2024. More than four million users make financial services transactions through GOfinance each month. The platform brings together wealth products, insurance, financing, remittance, the TNG eWallet Visa Card and other financial tools within TNG eWallet. Nearly one in three of TNG eWallet’s more than 27 million users now accesses GOfinance. Desmond Teoh, Chief Financial Services…
CTOS Digital has appointed Putri Norlisa Najib, the daughter of former Malaysian prime minister Najib Razak, as an independent non-executive director. The appointment will take effect on 25 September 2026, according to filings with Bursa Malaysia. According to CTOS, Putri Norlisa is the joint managing partner of law firm Adnan Sundra & Low and has more than 20 years of legal experience, particularly in banking and finance. She began her legal career in 2005 at Eversheds in London, where she trained and practised as a solicitor specialising in banking. After returning to Malaysia, she was called to the Malaysian Bar…
Agrobank is set to recover RM1.505 million linked to its RM203.8 million fraud case after securing approval from the Sessions Court. The Edge reported that the money was traced to 60 accounts. Police have frozen RM16.929 million across 1,903 accounts connected to the investigation. The unauthorised transactions took place between 31 October and 3 November 2025. According to Agrobank’s court filing, the money was moved through the bank’s settlement account without its knowledge or approval rather than from customer accounts. The case involved 2,973 unauthorised transactions worth RM203.8 million, covering 1,644 Agrobank accounts and 881 beneficiary accounts across 20 banks.…