Kuala Lumpur, MALAYSIA, July 15, 2021 – Visa, the world’s leader in digital payments, today released new findings from its Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes study , highlighting that over seven in 10 Malaysians (74%) are aware and 65 per cent interested in using digital banking services. In the past 18 months, the nation has seen a significant acceleration in digital adoption due to the pandemic. Many Malaysians have changed the way they work, pay, and even bank. This is a positive outlook for applicants who had submitted their applications for the digital banking licences issued by Bank Negara Malaysia.
It has become a societal norm to avoid crowds and limit face-to-face interaction. The study showed that 43 per cent of Malaysians currently do not visit any bank branches and choose to bank only online. Malaysians are also drawn to using services from digital banks as they believe these services offered are more efficient, convenient, accessible, and secure. Having access to the same type of services at traditional banks but via digital channels allows consumers to bank at a place and time of their choice without being tied to the limitations of banking hours and long queues.
As the nation moves forward towards an era of digitalisation, Visa continues to collaborate with traditional banks that are building digital banking capabilities and new partners that are creating new digital banking services to add value to Malaysians' current needs.
Ng Kong Boon, Country Manager for Visa Malaysia, said, “The Visa Consumer Payment Attitudes study indicates that the nation is ready to go digital. Based on the findings, Malaysians are not only open to traditional banks but also new entrants that will be issued digital banking licenses. They have expressed interest in the digital banking services provided by renowned brands (71%), financial services brands (65%), and even new start-ups (60%). We believe it will take the collective effort of the government, existing traditional banks and institutions applying for digital banking licenses to create better financial inclusion for all, not just the affluent, but also the underserved and unserved population.”
“The study also showed that Malaysians are motivated to switch to a digital bank for better rewards (78%) and lower costs (72%). At Visa, we aim to empower our partners by providing them with the foundation to build unique and relevant user experiences and enhance their value propositions as they create their digital banking services. Through our network, partners can enable payment acceptance, money movement, and other value-added services such as risk, security, data, loyalty, and customer engagement to meet the needs of their customers.”
The shift to digital banking is highly anticipated by Malaysians. The study showed that Malaysians look forward to the digital banking experience for their basic banking needs, with highest interest to use digital banking services for bill payments (78%), transferring money to family and friends (69%), payment at retail locations (62%) and deposits and withdrawals (61%).
