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Cross-border payments between Malaysia-Thai-Indo now available

February 03, 2022

CROSS-BORDER Quick Response (QR) Payments between Malaysia- Thailand and Malaysia-Indonesia are now available, enabling convenient instant payments using just mobile phones.

This is pursuant to the joint announcement between central banks of Malaysia and Thailand in June 2021, and the joint announcement between the central banks of Malaysia and Indonesia on Jan 27, 2022.

Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) stated that the linkage with Thailand’s National ITMX has been completed and QR payments are now interoperable between both countries.

Travellers between Malaysia and Thailand can opt to make e-payments using their respective home country’s interoperable QRs at participating merchants.

Cross-Border QR Payments between Malaysia and Indonesia are now live and interoperable in partnership with ALTO, ARTA- JASA, JALIN and RINTIS.

Similarly, the linkage between DuitNow QR and QR Code Indone- sian Standard will allow travellers between Malaysia and Indonesia to make instant e-payments at participating merchants.

Public Bank Bhd became the first Malaysian bank together with Fiuu as the first merchant acquirer provider to participate in the linkage, as well as Kasikornbank and Siam Commercial Bank from Thailand.

As for the Malaysia-Indonesia linkage, among the participating banks are Bank Indonesia, CIMB Niaga, Bank Sinarmas, Bank Central Asia, Bank Mega, Bank Permata, Bank Syariah Indonesia as well as Bank BPD Bali along with Bank Mandiri as the merchant acquirer.

The Malaysia-Indonesia linkage would also allow payments from eWallets via ShopeePay, Ottocash, DANA and LinkAja. In the coming months more banks and merchant acquirers from all three countries respectively are expected to participate.

“We are delighted that this linkage would enable Malaysian travellers to tap into their bank or eWallet mobile app to make QR payments in Thailand and Indonesia, making these two countries among the earliest Asean countries to implement cross-border QR payments,” PayNet Retail Payments Services director Khairuan Abdul Rahman said in a recent statement.

“We are confident regular visitors to Thailand and Indonesia, either for business, work or leisure, would welcome the convenience in using QR for purchases in the countries,” he added.

“We anticipate higher e-payment adoption between these countries, especially with more competitive exchange rates for cross-border purchases.”

Public Bank MD Tan Sri Tay Ah Lek said that apart from providing greater convenience to both businesses and retail customers for both countries, the linkage will also further the bank’s efforts to provide greater financial inclusion as part of the bank’s environmental, social and governance efforts.

“Businesses of all sizes, including micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) can now accept payments from foreign tourists with the more efficient and secure options with cashless payments that are simple and cost-effective, lowering the barrier of doing business for MSMEs as Asean borders gradually reopen,” he explained.

“Meanwhile, for retail customers, the QR payment linkage is an added option, providing a secure mode of payments while offering better foreign exchange rates. Hence, customers will get better values from their spending, contributing to a win-win solution for all.”

Fiuu Fintech CEO Lee Li Meng meanwhile said that together with PayNet, the firm aims to drive new payment product features for its merchants such as Doctor2U and merchants who expect high tourist volumes as travel restrictions continue to be relaxed.

“For example, Doctor2U’s state-of-the-art Covid-19 screening facility at Kuala Lumpur International Airport will be screening 45,000 travellers daily as borders start reopening and DuitNow Cross-Border QR Codes will be beneficial to them when accepting payments from foreign visitors into Malaysia,” said Lee.

Malaysians abroad can make payments at participating merchants in Thailand or Indonesia by simply launching their mobile banking or eWallet app to scan the merchants’ QR code in the respective countries. Conversely, the people from Thailand and Indonesia visiting Malaysia can do the same by scanning DuitNow QR standees to make payments at any participating merchants in the country.

Repost from: The Malaysian Reserve.