Tag Archives: digital finance

Business, News

AEON Bank Officially Open As Malaysia’s First Digital Islamic Bank

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AEON Bank (M) Berhad officially launched its operations on May 26, 2024, marking a significant milestone as Malaysia’s first fully Islamic digital bank. The launch ceremony, held at AEON Hall, AEON Mall Shah Alam, was attended by prominent figures from the financial sector and government, including Yang Bahagi Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican, Secretary General of Treasury, Ministry of Finance.

AEON Bank Launch Gambit
From left to right: Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican, Secretary General of Treasury, Ministry of Finance; Raja Teh Maimunah, CEO of AEON Bank (M) Berhad; Daisuke Maeda, Non-Independent Executive Director of AEON Bank (M) Berhad & Chairman ofAEON Credit Service (M) Berhad; Naoya Okada, Managing Director of AEON Co (M) Berhad

AEON Bank offers a variety of Shariah-compliant digital banking solutions for personal banking customers. These currently include:

  • Savings Account-i: This account offers a competitive profit rate.
  • Savings Pots: Users can create customized savings pots to achieve specific financial goals.
  • Budgeting Tools: These tools help users manage their finances effectively.

Customers who activate their accounts can immediately access a virtual AEON Bank x Visa Debit Card-i. A physical debit card option is also available upon request.

AEON Bank emphasizes providing a seamless user experience. New customers signing up during the launch campaign can enjoy a 3,000 AEON Points bonus and earn triple the points on transactions using their new debit card. Additionally, existing members of the AEON Points program will have their membership automatically linked to the AEON Bank app. This integration unlocks further benefits and rewards across the extensive AEON ecosystem, encompassing AEON Malls, supermarkets, and partner merchants. Points earned can be conveniently converted to cash within the user’s AEON Bank account.

05. Public Launch Campaign at Concourse Area AEON Mall Shah Alam

AEON Bank is committed to reaching a broad customer base. The launch campaign at AEON Mall Shah Alam featured public activations, family-oriented activities, and exclusive giveaways to engage with the community. This approach will continue with nationwide roadshows planned across eight Malaysian states from June to November 2024.

By prioritizing accessibility, AEON Bank aims to empower all Malaysians, particularly the underserved and unbanked segments, to participate in the financial system and achieve their financial goals. The launch of this Islamic digital bank is a noteworthy development in Malaysia’s evolving financial landscape.

Business, News

Curlec by RazorPay Joins PayNet to Advance Real-Time Payments in Malaysia

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Curlec, a full-stack payments solution provider under Razorpay, has become a member of Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet). This a significant move set to promote real-time payment adoption across Malaysia. Being the first new PayNet member since 2019, Curlec’s inclusion empowers them to drive wider adoption of real-time payment processing which aligns with Bank Negara Malaysia’s (BNM) vision for a cashless society.

Curlec 01
From left: Zac Liew, Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Curlec; Gary Yeoh, Chief Commercial Officer, PayNet; Rahul Kothari, Chief Business Officer, Razorpay

With this membership, Curlec will adopt PayNet’s DuitNow product suite This will allow its customers to conduct real-time payments from bank accounts and e-wallets. This will bolster the services it offers its merchants including renowned brands such as Tune Protect, CTOS, Mary Kay, and The National Kidney Foundation.

Curlec brings valuable insights and expertise from the Razorpay Group, which pioneered India’s Unified Payment Interface (UPI). UPI is the world’s largest digital payments market having processed 74 billion transactions in 2022 alone. The success of UPI in India, growing at an average of 380% since its launch in 2016, positions Curlec to drive the adoption of DuitNow payments in Malaysia effectively.

Zac Liew, Co-Founder & CEO of Curlec by Razorpay, emphasized the momentum they are building with their “Payments Uncompromised” approach. Curlec’s Payment Gateway has rapidly gained traction, processing over RM2 billion annually and serving more than 1,000 merchants. This paves the way for Curlec to innovate the digital payment landscape in Malaysia and scale DuitNow payments to the next level.

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Source: Curlec by RazorPay

Liew outlined the broader vision, stating, “The target growth of Malaysia’s digital payments sets the path for The Curlec Payment Gateway’s target to serve more than 5,000 businesses with RM10 billion annualized gross transaction value (GTV) by 2025.”

Rahul Kothari, Chief Business Officer at Razorpay, expressed enthusiasm for their substantial investment in Malaysia’s domestic payment ecosystem. He sees parallels between the Malaysian and Indian payments markets, making Malaysia a key strategic market for them. Kothari believes they can play a pivotal role in promoting DuitNow adoption, similar to their role in scaling UPI in India.

Android, Lifestyle, Mobile, News

Touch ‘n Go eWallet is Now More Than Just Payment with GO+

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If you checked your Touch ‘n Go eWallet app these past few days, you would have noticed a new feature, or a new icon. You might have come across ‘GO+’. I know I have, and a few of our friends have asked us what it was before today’s official launch of Touch ‘n Go’s GO+. Now that it is officially launched, we can properly explain what GO+ is.

Welcome to GO+, your gateway to small time investments and mainstream financial services. Essentially, you are investing with Principal, an asset management platform anchored by CIMB. In turn, GO+ is anchored by Principal, in alliance with CIMB, specifically their e-Cash Fund platform.

GO+ will take advantage of Principal’s asset management platform to sort of make investments to grow your financial assets via Touch ‘n Go’s eWallet platform. By putting as little as RM10 into the platform will supposedly guarantee a growth rate of 1.43% per annum. While that may not seem like much, it is more than putting your money into your bank’s savings account or current accounts.

The growth is not credited over a year long period too. You get returns on a daily basis and the returns are credited to your GO+ account every day. That also means the growth is an immediately visible one. Principal also promises no risks to the platform, so you can be rest assured that you will only be seeing growth.

What makes GO+ even better for users is that because it is integrated with Touch ‘n Go eWallet app, you can transfer the funds from GO+ into Touch ‘n Go eWallet accounts immediately at any given time, and vice versa. It does not stop there though; you can transfer credits from GO+ to any of your registered bank accounts immediately too. You can even use your GO+ account to pay for things via Touch ‘n Go eWallet app. That also means with GO+, you are more flexible than anything else you can currently find on the Malaysian market.

To get yourself on GO+ now, you can look into your Touch ‘N Go eWallet app and immediately register and upgrade your account to a GO+ account. You can start investing with GO+ with as little as RM10. For now, the service is only available to Malaysian citizens above 18 years of age. The Touch ‘n Go eWallet app is available for free from Google’s Play Store and Apple’s App Store for Android and iOS respectively