28/07/2025

LYFE MONDAY | JULY 28, 2025

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Price of scan to pay

T HE pandemic brought many things with it, mostly bad, but it also paved the way forward for others, such as how it radically changed consumer habits by triggering a huge shift towards digital payments. In Malaysia today, a quick scan of a QR code can pay for anything from a small pack of nasi lemak to a full-blown car wash. Platforms such as Touch ’n Go (TNG) e-wallet, GrabPay, Boost and MAE by Maybank are well on their way to becoming a crucial part of everyday life. However, the adoption of digital wallets is not an exclusively positive phenomenon. In a country where cash was king for a long time, are e-wallets truly a superior option? scale Scan-to-pay has taken hold in urban areas, especially among younger consumers. The TNG e-wallet, for example, claims to have over 400,000 merchant touchpoints nationwide. From paying for parking to transferring duit raya , the reach is undeniable. 0 Cashback, coins and perks Digital wallets are not just o Grounded look at positives, negatives of going cashless Ű BY MARK MATHEN VICTOR The case for e-wallets 0 Convenience at

Cash will never really go away but with the push for a cashless society, we will likely see less of it as time goes by. – PICS FROM FREEPIK structured environment with streamlined digital payments from cities, chain retailers, parking systems and toll booths, to name a few, going cashless makes sense. For everything else, cash remains almost as essential. Additionally, the government is not pushing to eliminate cash, with Bank Negara Malaysia’s agenda being a cashless-ready society, where digital tools are an option, rather than a be-all, end-all mandate. It allows room for further tech adoption without necessarily alienating older users, low-income earners or communities without the proper infrastructure in place. E-wallets are without a doubt useful and efficient. It has evolved fast in the past six years and will continue to do so, but in Malaysia, where the digital divide is still real, they work best as a supplement, not a full replacement, for cash. The smartest move for most? Use both. Let digital tools make your life easier but do not get rid of the backup plan in your wallets and purses just yet. Middle ground In a top-down

Rural regions in Malaysia as well as other countries will understandably still prefer cash. society first requires everyone to have similar easy access to the infrastructure required, which may not be the case in rural areas, where infrastructure can vary greatly not only between each other, but with cities. More often than not, cash still dominates in smaller towns and pasar malam stalls. 0 Dependency on connectivity E-wallets are only as reliable as your internet connection. Payment failures due to weak signal or app downtime remain a frustration. Offline QR payment options exist but are not widely implemented. 0 Easier to overspend Tap, confirm, done. The physical “pain” of handing over cash disappears with digital payments. That psychological distance can lead to impulse spending, which is an issue particularly relevant for teens, students and even adults with weak willpower. 0 Data is not just yours E-wallets track when, where and what users spend their digital currency on. That data can be used for targeted ads or internal analysis. Malaysia’s Personal Data Protection Act provides some protection, but concerns have been raised over its effectiveness.

Cashless payments have become the norm in most cities.

younger Malaysians managing freelance or gig-based incomes. 0 Reduced theft risk Cash is vulnerable. Lose it and it is gone. E-wallets, on the other hand, are protected by PINs, biometrics and in most cases, remote lock features. Bank Negara Malaysia’s Risk Management in Technology policy also requires service providers to meet certain security standards.

functional – they are rewarding. Boost Coins, GrabRewards and the occasional 20% cashback deals have normalised gamified spending. For high-frequency users, especially in Klang Valley, these incentives offer tangible savings. 0 Built-in transaction records E-wallets log every transaction automatically, even if the in-app records are not automatically updated. This is not just helpful for budgeting, it also serves as a quiet nudge toward financial accountability, especially for

The catch 0 Rural disconnect Pushing an agenda for a cashless 99% of Malaysians likely to use emerging digital payment methods in next year DIGITAL payments adoption is fast gaining traction locally as Malaysians adopt innovative payment options and leapfrog into mobile-first ecosystems. This preference for innovation applies to other emerging

methods such as Tap & Go mobile payments, biometric payments, QR codes and mobile wallets – over traditional methods such as cash or manual card entry, reflecting a widespread appetite for innovation. This compares to just 25% in North America, 24% in Europe and 53% in Asia Pacific overall, underlining Malaysian consumers’ receptivity to adopting emerging digital payment solutions. Malaysians among most enthusiastic to embrace innovation Digital payment adoption is set to surge in Malaysia, with 99% of consumers likely to use emerging digital payment methods in the next year. They also want a choice in payment types, with 93% likely to use five or more payment methods in the next 12 months. While cash is still Malaysia’s most used payment method – 70% of consumers used it in the last year, narrowly edging out QR code payments (64%), usage of digital payment methods is set to rise in the next year. In Malaysia, 86% of consumers are likely to use instant payment services, while 85% and 83% expect to use QR code payments and digital wallets, respectively, in the year ahead.

technologies as well, with 89% of Malaysian consumers (compared to 86% across Apac more broadly) saying they are keen to use artificial intelligence (AI) to manage their finances, particularly for fraud detection, payment automation, product personalisation and predicting financial outcomes. There is also rising demand for payment options to maximise the value of their wallets: 91% of Malaysians agree that their current financial status plays a substantial role in their choice of payment methods, among the highest globally. What Malaysian consumers expect As payment options grow, consumers are seeking hyper-convenient ways to manage money that fit seamlessly with their digital usage habits. They want flexibility to customise how they pay, tapping into digitally native methods such as peer-to-peer or peer-to-merchant payments, QR codes, wearables and social commerce. In fact, 92% of Malaysians agree that companies should make it as simple as possible for consumers to buy from them, with 86% agreeing that they should be able to buy

New research by Mastercard, which surveyed consumers across the globe on payment preferences, has found that almost two-thirds (63%) of Malaysian consumers prefer using new and innovative

Most Malaysians are keen to use AI to manage finances. – PICS FROM PEXELS anything at any time, regardless of the type of payment methods. leisure spaces such as social media apps is key to enabling this shift from browsing to buying.

0 Super apps are the new baseline In Malaysia, 75% of consumers use or want all-in-one apps to manage payments, shopping and more. As these platforms become mainstream, payment tools must meet consumers where they already are, not the other way around. 0 Social shopping is shaping commerce, especially for younger consumers In Malaysia, 54% of Gen Z consumers and 46% of millennial consumers prefer buying through social apps as compared to a merchant’s website. In fact, 72% of Malaysians say influencers now shape their buying decisions – eight percentage points higher than the region’s average. Embedding seamless payments into digital

0 Trust and security are top of mind While 72% of Malaysian consumers see biometric payments as more secure than traditional methods, 84% are concerned about who has access to their data, six percentage points higher than the Asia Pacific average. This tension highlights a broader challenge to simplify security without sacrificing control and convenience. Credit card solutions such as tokenisation, Payment Passkeys and AI-driven authentication help bridge this trust gap. These growing demands highlight the need for financial innovations that are relevant by design, not retrofitted from legacy systems.

Social shopping is shaping commerce, especially for younger consumers.