Touch ‘n Go gets BNM nod for mobile e-wallet

KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Group Holdings Bhd’s subsidiary, Touch ‘n Go Sdn Bhd (TNGSB), has obtained approval from Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to operate and offer mobile e-wallet services in the country.

The services, leveraging on the Alipay technology platform, will be operated via TNG Digital Sdn Bhd, a joint-venture company with Ant Financial Group (Ant Financial), said CIMB in a filing to Bursa Malaysia yesterday.

Ant Financial’s Alipay technology platform currently supports over 450 million users in China alone via its Alipay payments system.

The new mobile e-wallet will enable Malaysians to experience a secure, convenient and seamless payment ecosystem by using Quick Response codes to perform, among others, online shopping, bill payment, retail payments, as well as peer-to-peer fund transfers.

TNGSB Chief Executive Officer, Syahrunizam Samsudin, said the company expected its current users who are predominantly toll, transit and parking users to quickly sign on to enjoy these expanded services.

“In support of the government’s aspiration to accelerate the creation of a robust and secure digital payments ecosystem, we are excited to have obtained approval for this new e-wallet through our joint-venture with Alipay.

“Today, Touch ‘n Go are already the number one player in micropayments and we see this offering as an add-on as we strengthen our value proposition, moving the country and our customers further into the realm of digital payments,” he said.

TNGSB holds the intellectual property rights to the Touch ‘n Go system, which is the de facto standard for contactless smartcards in Malaysia. The company is owned by CIMB, MTD Equity Sdn Bhd and PLUS Expressways Bhd. - Bernama