Bursa Malaysia is said to be partnering with Hashstacs to co-develop a blockchain Proof-of-Concept project dubbed “Project Harbour” for its bonds marketplace. Project Harbour is centred around the usage of Distributed Ledger Technology (” DLT”) as a register in facilitating the growth of Labuan’s bond marketplace. The project will take place in Malaysia’s offshore market, Labuan, in collaboration with the Labuan Financial Exchange (LFX), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bursa Malaysia. Project Harbour is aimed at exploring and harnessing the opportunities enabled by blockchain and tokenisation of assets. The entire lifecycle management of digital bonds will tested and managed on Trident…

Fasspay an e-money license holder regulated by Bank Negara Malaysia, has received the regulator’s approval to support a set of new offerings that will expand the capabilities of its white label e-wallet solution. Fasspay is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Soft Space a Malaysian based payments specialist. The approval enables Fasspay’s white label e-wallet to support a limit of up to RM10,000. They said the approval also grants Fasspay the ability to issue physical Visa-branded prepaid cards that can be linked to the e-wallet application thereby giving them access to a virtual card too. In May, Fasspay was the first to…

For fintech to thrive and reach its full potential, Malaysia must establish a conducive and comprehensive fintech ecosystem where all industry participants work towards the same goals, said Datuk Wira Dr Hj. Rais Hussin Mohamed Ariff, chairman of Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), the government agency driving digital transformation and adoption. Speaking at the first episode of the Orbit Talk Series on July 23,  Datuk Wira Dr Hj Rais Hussin cited the case of tech giant Grab, a startup originally from Malaysia but which later moved to Singapore after failing to raise much-needed funding in its native country, stating that…

Huawei announced that it will be hosting its APAC Financial Industry Storage Summit 2020 on the 13th August 2020. The high-level summit is targeted at keeping the C-level from banks informed on the latest trends, developments and challenges in data storage. This is becoming increasingly crucial as the world rapidly becomes more digital, thanks largely to ubiquitous connectivity and an entire generation of people who are digital natives. There are no signs of the digital revolution slowing down as many of the markets in Asia-Pacific including Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, and the Philippines have all moved towards introducing regulations to facilitate the…

Telco operator U Mobile announced a partnership with Funding Societies to offer business financing solutions for Malaysian micro, small and medium enterprises (SMEs), as well as small office/home office (SOHO) customers via its digital payment acceptance solution GoBiz. Customers of U Mobile and Gobiz will be able to access Funding Societies’ P2P financing platform which offers flexibility in loans ranging from RM3,000 to RM1 million. They said the entire process can be done digitally through GoBiz’s website and existing customers of U Mobile or GoBiz will not need to provide collateral or retention sum. They claim that borrowers will be…

Ata Plus, an equity crowdfunding platform approved by the Securities Commission Malaysia announced that GreenPro Capital Corp, a NASDAQ-listed firm has acquired 15% stake in the equity crowdfunding platform operator. According to its NASDAQ listing, Green Pro is incorporated in 2013 in Nevada, USA, and its subsidiaries are involved in businesses including but not limited to: financial consultation services, corporate advisory services, offshore formation advisory services, and loan and credit services. Following this announcement GreenPro said that it will be relocating its headquarters to Kuala Lumpur. Ata Plus said that the acquisition will help it to “fast track its focus”…

HSBC Malaysia announced the launch of its digital account opening service, claiming that it is the first bank to do so in Malaysia. However, the process is still not a fully digital one as it still requires customers to show up at its self-service machine for identification and verification process. The self service machine is said to be available 24/7. This development follows Bank Negara’s Malaysia unveiling of a new policy document for eKYC in Malaysia which took effect in June 2020, this policy documents facilitates digital verification of customers which paves the way for digital account onboarding. “Our digital…

Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) announced on Thursday the launch its micro-investing app Raiz. Raiz is a micro investing mobile app which utilises users’ virtual spare change from rounding up everyday purchases to proactively invest into ASNB’s variable price funds based on personalised investment portfolios. It is a unique way for users to make the most of every cent being spent, the residual of which can be saved and invested. Apart from this round-up investment, users can choose to invest using lump-sum investments as well as recurring investments. It developed as a joint venture between PNB’s susbsidiary Jewel Digital Ventures and…

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) is seeking industry feedback on the regulatory framework for digital asset wallet providers, which will complement the existing frameworks for Digital Asset Exchange (DAX) and Initial Exchange Offering(IEO). Digital asset wallet providers are entities that provide custody or storage services on behalf of digital asset owners. Such providers play an important role within the ecosystem in safeguarding the digital assets of the client. In this regard, SC is reaching out to existing digital asset wallet providers or any interested parties to reach out to the regulator for an engagement on their current business operations or…

Fundaztic a P2P financing platform operator, has officially rolled out their secondary market. This offers over 20,000 members of Fundaztic the opportunity to trade their existing notes with one another, this allows the, adjust their portfolio strategy and increase their flexibility in the management of their cash flow. Against the backdrop of the current economic situation, the introduction of the secondary market is especially relevant for investors who may need to sell their notes to meet their cash flow needs and to investors who may want to build broader, more resilient portfolios. “We have been preparing for the secondary market…

UOB Malaysia’s innovation accelerator The FinLab has launched a regional digital platform to where local SMEs and start-ups can start their digital transformation journey. The FinLab Online digital platform will incorporate the Jom Transform Programme, a business transformation programme in Malaysia to help local SMEs digitalise their operations for productivity and revenue growth. The programme which will commence in August 2020 is supported by The Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) as a strategic partner to provide advisory in digitalisation. SMEs in the programme will go through a one-month curriculum on the digital platform where they will have access to industry…

Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) today added the popular crypto exchange platform Binance to in its investor alert list which warns the general public about entities that are not authorised in carrying out regulated activities in Malaysia. They were added to the list for “operating a recognized market without authorisation from the SC.” To operate a crypto exchange in Malaysia an entity is required to be registered as a Digital Asset Exchange (DAX). Currently, there are only 3 crypto exchanges that received the nod to operate in Malaysia, they are namely — Luno, SINEGY and Tokenize. This comes after a warning…

GHL Group Berhad announced today that its Philippines arm has received approval for the Philippines Securities and Exchange Commission to operated a lending business via its new unit, GHL Phlippines Financing Services Inc. GHL who is traditionally known for its payments business has been seen diversifying its business of late. Towards the end of 2019, GHL similarly received the nod to operate its lending business in Malaysia and Thailand. Subsequent to that, they’ve entered into a partnership with Axiata’s micro-lending platform Aspirasi with the aim of “narrowing the financial inclusion gap” in Malaysia. In early 2019, they’ve also partnered with…

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) cautioned the public against the usage of Crypto ATMs. Crypto ATM are machines that allows individuals to buy and/or sell digital assets like Bitcoin and Ethereum, and XRP. These machines are installed in various locations in Malaysia, facilitating the exchange of different types of digital assets with fiat currency and vice versa. The regulator reiterates that Crypto ATM operators are considered to be operating a Digital Asset Exchange (DAX) which requires registration with the SC. In this regard, the SC said that it has not authorised any entity to operate Crypto ATMs. The SC also warned…

Instapay announced today the launch of an e-wallet service that is targetted at the migrant worker population. The company holds an e-money license with Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and has teamed up with Mastercard to a pre-paid payments card that’s linked to the e-wallet. The e-wallet enables employers to digitise wage payments for the migrant workers which reduces the cost and risk of cash handling. At the same time, the partnership with Mastercard enables migrant workers to use the card to pay at any merchants which accepts Mastercard and this alos provides them access to ATMs. This, in turn, provides…

Following the introduction of XRP, Luno announced today that it has added Litecoin (LTC) to its trading platform. This is the fourth digital asset approved by the Securities Commission Malaysia to be traded by Malaysians. From 7th July, Malaysian customers will be able to buy, sell, store and learn more about this digital asset. Litecoin (LTC), often referred to as the silver to Bitcoin’s gold, is a top ten cryptocurrency with a market cap of US$2.7 billion. The cryptocurrency, initially created in 2011, was developed to provide a faster and cheaper alternative to Bitcoin, with the aim of offering a…

Adyen, a global payments platform, today announced the expansion of its acquiring capabilities to include Malaysia. They said that this move complements the company’s all-in-one payment platform allowing merchants like Fave, foodpanda and Love, Bonito to get the most out of each transaction with local payment processing. A quick check on the Bank Negara Malaysia website shows that Adyen’s name has been added to the central bank’s list of regulatees, confirming its license to operate in Malaysia as a merchant acquirer. This announcement extends Adyen’s local acquiring capabilities in Asia-Pacific, following launches in Australia, Hong Kong, Singapore and is supported…

The COVID-19 pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we live resulting in mass digital adoption as we rapidly shifted to a digital and contactless way of life – from buying food and essentials to how we work. Domenic Fuda, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Hong Leong Bank (HLB) said that the MCO period has provided individuals and businesses with a live test-case on how digital platforms, including digital banking and payments, could help them continue to live life and run their business uninterrupted. This greater digital adoption and digital transformation of the economy will increase the importance…

Over two million Malaysian road taxes remain expired since the Road Transport Department (JPJ) counters closed during the Movement Control Order (MCO). In an effort to help address this as well as Malaysia’s alarming number of uninsured vehicles on the road, Zurich General Insurance Malaysia is collaborating with Finology and their affiliate partner PayLink Global (M) Sdn Bhd (Payquik) to provide road tax renewal services and motor insurance purchase via Payquik’s network of kiosks in Malaysia. Through this collaboration, road users in Malaysia will be able to renew their road tax or purchase motor insurance for their vehicles at approximately…

As consumers behaviors shift to becoming increasingly digital, the financial services industry is forced to cater to changing nature of its customers. Regulators are also taking notice of the shift and gaps within the system and as a result, started issuing new guidelines for virtual banks. Similarly in Malaysia, Bank Negara recently announced a draft framework where they are looking at issuing 5 virtual banking licenses. To discuss this changing landscape we were joined by Khairil Abdullah, CEO Axiata Digital, Navin Rajagopalan, Co-Founder, BigPay, Anand Subbaraman, General Manager, Retail Banking, Finastra, and Marcus Von Engel, Partner, Malaysia, Financial Services Consulting…