TnG, Boost, GrabPay selected as national e-wallet partners, 15mil Malaysians to benefit

• Expected to accelerate e-wallet adoption, currently estimated at 8%
• Estimated 15 mil eligible Malaysians to receive one-off US$7.25 e-wallet credit

Back in October this year, during the tabling of Malaysia’s Budget 2020, the government announced an initiative (now known as e-Tunai Rakyat program) that is meant to boost e-wallet and digital payment usage in the country. Through it, eligible Malaysians will be receiving a one-off US$7.25 (RM30) e-wallet credit next year.

The e-Tunai Rakyat program has just officially kicked off, and signed on as the e-wallet partners of the program are Boost, Touch ‘n Go eWallet and GrabPay.

Under this initiative, Malaysians above 18 years old who earn less than US$24,140 (RM100,000) annually will be entitled to receive a one-off RM30 per person through the respective wallets. The RM450 million e-Tunai Rakyat initiative is expected to benefit 15 million Malaysians.

[RM1 = US$0.24]

The campaign will kickstart on 15 January 2020 and will run for 2 months until 14 March 2020. Claims can be made and fully utilised within the 2 months’ time frame.

Perks and benefits

Mobile penetration and the awareness of mobile payments is high in Malaysia, at 88%. However, according to a study by Nielsen, a mere 8% of the population use e-wallets. “This move by the Government will encourage new users who’ve never used an e-wallet before to experience going cashless with their smartphones for the first time. We can also consider the digital stimulus as a form of endorsement of e-wallet technology use which is safe and secure for financial transactions,” says Boost chief executive officer Mohd Khairil Abdullah.  

There are certainly some benefits for going into e-wallets as a form of payment. Grab, for one, claims that their GrabPay e-wallet users have saved close to RM2 million on everyday services, especially through their “Pay with Points”, “Pay with GrabPay” and “GrabPay Price” features.

Some of the e-Tunai program partners have already begun to offer incentives to attract users to their respective e-wallets. Boost, for instance, announced that they will be introducing offers across most of its 125,000 merchant partners covering F&B, grocery, online shopping, health and beauty, petrol, telco, bill payments and even parking during the two-month initiative. 

In addition, Boost users also stand to win prizes and once-in-a-lifetime experiences through BoostUP, the e-wallet’s user rewards programme.

Touch ‘n Go did not announce any incentives, but says that the funds can be used at any one of their 110,000 merchant acceptance points, on top of using it as part of their PayDirect and RFID features for toll payments.

“We are in full support of the Government’s initiatives to spur a digital economy and we want to ensure that no Malaysian is left behind as the country powers towards becoming a fully digital economy,” TNG Digital Sdn Bhd CEO Ignatious Ong says.

“As the pioneer in micropayments, the government has entrusted Touch ‘n Go eWallet to implement the e-Tunai Rakyat to bridge the gap between cashless and cash in Malaysia. We hope to give Malaysians the confidence they need to adopt the inevitable cashless lifestyle.”

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