Schiesser (left) and Tay posing for a photo during the launch of DuitNow PR.
KUCHING: Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) held a soft launch of Malaysia’s National QR Standard, known as DuitNow QR, with Public Bank as the first bank adopting the standard.
DuitNow QR is established under Bank Negara Malaysia’s Interoperable Credit Transfer Framework (ICTF).
ICTF mandates that PayNet, as the country’s shared payment infrastructure provider, implement an interoperable and common QR standard for Malaysia.
With the launch of DuitNow QR, Malaysia has a common QR standard which will work for customers of all participating banks and e-wallets.
DuitNow QR will foster an efficient, competitive and innovative payment landscape in Malaysia by enabling interoperability, promoting collaborative competition and providing fair and open access to the shared payment infrastructure.
Present at the soft launch were Tan Sri Tay Ah Lek, chief executive officer of Public Bank, and Peter Schiesser, group chief executive officer, PayNet.
Tay performed the first DuitNow QR transaction using Public Bank’s PB engage mobile app at Pie Kingdom, a popular café in Bangsar South, which Public Bank has enrolled to accept DuitNow QR.
Through DuitNow QR, users can make payment from any participating Banks or e-Wallets mobile apps.
Merchants would only need to display one QR Code, the DuitNow QR, to accept payments, as opposed to the current practice of displaying multiple proprietary QR codes at payment counters.
“We are delighted to be the first bank adopting DuitNow QR.
With this soft launch, Public Bank will bring innovative payment solutions to our retail consumers and SME business clients.
Driven by our new PB engage mobile banking app, we anticipate that the DuitNow QR will see strong take-up,” said Tay.
In addition to Public Bank, there are 33 banks that will be enabling DuitNow QR in their mobile banking apps. These banks will progressively go live over the next 12 months.
“We have also received applications from 12 licensed e-wallet providers and non-bank acquirers to participate in the DuitNow QR scheme and we expect to admit a number of those in the next 6 months,” added Schiesser.
“At the moment, we see a proliferation of QR codes from a multitude of e-wallets which is confusing for consumers.
In addition, e-wallet providers are incurring substantial merchant acquiring costs because they are each signing up the same set of merchants for their respective proprietary networks.
“With DuitNow QR, a merchant needs to sign up with only one bank or e-wallet acquirer, and customers of all participating banks and e-wallets would be able to make DuitNow QR payments to the merchant using their respective mobile apps,” Schiesser said.
DuitNow QR is an extension of the DuitNow service launched in December 2018, which allows Bank customers to transfer money instantly and securely on a 24/7 basis at Banks’ Internet or Mobile Banking channels.
DuitNow fund transfers can be directed using the recipients’ mobile numbers, MyKad or business registration numbers.
The introduction of DuitNow QR extends DuitNow to allow fund transfers to merchants, directed using the merchants’ DuitNow QR codes.