- Aims to popularise cashless payments through exhibitions and activities
- 78% of Malaysia still prefer cash in 2021, and is expected to increase further in 2022
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), in collaboration with Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet), has launched the [email protected] pilot project at 28 selected Keluarga Malaysia Digital Economy Centres (PEDi) nationwide.
The objective of this pilot is to popularise cashless payments among rural communities through exhibitions and activities held at PEDi. This is in line with the goal of improving digital payment literacy under the Malaysian Digital Economy Blueprint.
PayNet is owned by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and 11 local banks. It is a national retail payment network operator and centralised shared infrastructure for the Malaysian financial market.
According to the PayNet Digital Payments Insights Study 2022, 78% of Malaysians still prefered to use cash payments in 2021, an 11% drop from 2020. However, it is expected that cash usage will increase again in 2022, especially in rural areas.
The pilot project kicked off in PEDi PPR Sri Pantai and PEDi PA Seri Sabah, Kuala Lumpur on 31 December 2022. Residents were provided with information and shown the advantages of cashless payment methods.
They also had the opportunity to experience cashless shopping there through various e-payment methods managed by PayNet, such as debit cards (MyDebit), JomPay, DuitNow QR, and more.
This January, the [email protected] campaign will continue at PEDi Taman Kelisa and PEDi FELDA Soeharto in Selangor, followed by several PEDi in Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, and Johor. MCMC and PayNet will study the effectiveness of this pilot project before the program is expanded to the rest of the country.