Phasing Out Cold, Hard Cash

Say hello to four more apps convincing Malaysians to jump on board the e-payment bandwagon!

- Ellfian Rahim & Neda Al-Asedi

Over the past couple of years, FinTech developments have certainly revolutionised many things in Malaysia, and perhaps one of the most visible changes it has brought is in how most Malaysians pay for the many products and services that they enjoy on a daily basis.

With the widespread popularity of e-payment or e-wallet systems in Malaysia, one could safely say that the days of needing to have a substantial amount of cash handy to facilitate this are all but numbered. Certainly, two key factors governs one’s choice of e-wallets, and these would be spending habits and of course, that lifestyle appeal of a certain brand representing this service.

Boost, GrabPay, and Fave are just some familiar names fronting the e-wallet industry in Malaysia. With adoption rates rising, it’s not uncommon for Malaysians to have multiple (and we’re talking upwards of three) e-wallets at once, each used for different purposes and to give users as much bang for their buck and convenience of payment as possible. There are many more than the three mentioned above in the industry, and here are four of the more innovative and niche systems in Malaysia who are doing electronic wallets, but with a twist.

AT THE TOUCH OF A BUTTON

The Touch ’n Go name has been ingrained in the life of every Malaysian for several years now. They were the first to introduce a cashless system for toll payments in the country with their prepaid card model, and had then gone on to implement the system onto public transport, first on the KTM and now encompassing all bus and rail lines in the country. So their foray into the e-wallet scene was a long time coming.