The changing landscape of the printing industry has driven the company to diversify into virtually-centred tech

by SHAHEERA AZNAM SHAH & S BIRRUNTHA / pic byMUHD AMIN NAHARUL

Percetakan Nasional Malaysia Bhd (PNMB) has launched its integrated payment solution, Payfo, which focuses on assisting the current needs of the public and businesses.

Apart from its payment solution, the integrated platform offers services such as an e-subsidy platform, remittance and money exchange services, a migrant marketplace and a digital bank.

Payfo was developed by PNMB’s wholly owned subsidiary, PNMB Payfo Sdn Bhd.

PNMB Payfo COO and co-founder Adlin Yusman said the platform, which partners Pos Malaysia Bhd for its payment service, covers 70% of Malaysians’ total bills.

“We have integrated the Payfo’s system with our sister company, Pos Malaysia, and that allows all billers within Malaysia, that are found through Pos Malaysia’s payment system, to be accessible to our platform as well.

“The integration allows us to cover 70% of Malaysia’s total bill, with the remaining 30% for smaller billers,” he told reporters at the launch of Payfo in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

Adlin said PNMB Payfo has also partnered financial technology (fintech) developers in Australia and Singapore to facilitate the platform to embark on its global expansion.

“We are partnering an Australian digital bank called Volt Bank, which is the first of two digital banks to receive the licence in Australia to support our digital banking platform,” he said.

“We are also collaborating with a Singaporean-based hedge fund firm to facilitate our financial service.

“The hedging and digital bank services are the potential products that have received demands beyond Malaysia,” he added.

Additionally, the firm is in the middle of deploying the platform in South-East Asia and Central Asia, while exploring other markets.

“There are certain markets, in addition to South-East Asia and Central Asia, that we have been eyeing for our specific type of products.

“We are in no rush to enter the open markets, but whenever there is opportunity, we are definitely going to explore that,” he said.

In his speech, PNMB chairman Tan Sri Abu Zahar Nika Ujang said the changing landscape of the printing industry has driven the company to diversify its capabilities into virtually-centred technology.

“The ever-changing industrial landscape of paper-based printing had driven PNMB to react more aggressively and enhance our capabilities in the approach towards the printing industry through innovation.

“We had successfully embarked on expanding our value chain, ascending to redefine printing from paper-based into printing virtually-centred products,” he said.

Payfo aims to disrupt the financial space by building innovative products and solutions to assist the current needs of both businesses and direct users.

According to the Fintech Malaysia Report 2018, the volume of recorded transactions for mobile banking and e-money in Malaysia in 2017 stood at 2.82 billion worth RM57.4 billion.

The amount of digital payment transactions is expected to show an annual growth rate of 12.5% between 2019 and 2023.