Open banking is a massive opportunity for the financial sector today. It’s recognized almost everywhere as one of the many definitive solutions to enhancing growth. Yet, many still face difficulties regarding its implementation. If so, you’re not alone – recently, I had the amazing opportunity to facilitate a roundtable in Malaysia with some of the country’s finest in financial services, including representatives from RHB, CIMB, Maybank and Affin Bank.

Together, we gathered to discuss the potential of open banking in the country. Here are the key takeaways:

• By leveraging open APIs and embracing collaboration, financial institutions can provide tailored financial solutions to better understand customers’ financial health and growth potential.
• Banks and fintechs can utilize open banking to drive lending growth among SMEs and entrepreneurs.
• There is a need for banks and fintechs to build different behavioural models using Open APIs to understand customers’ financial health and growth potential.
• Open banking represents the next innovative catalyst for Malaysia, holding great promise in driving the country’s economic growth.

Develop a secure and standardized framework

Our discussion began with an overwhelming consensus – there is a lack of a formal set of regulatory policies and standards in Malaysia’s financial landscape. The argument for a streamlined, secure and standardized framework stems primarily from the need to ensure customer privacy while promoting collaboration. As a result, standardization is necessary for a conducive environment, encouraging banks and fintechs to:

• Develop potential partnerships
• Explore new territory with shared technologies
• Increase product innovation

Enhance Malaysia’s digital footprint

Amid the rise of e-commerce, widespread smartphone usage and increasing digital adoption, one underlying pain point tied all these digital trends together. Customers today want our financial solutions to be easy, fast and secure. Open banking meets this demand by:

• Offering differentiated ancillary products
• Reducing switching costs
• Seamless integration of personalized offerings

The result – a memorable customer experience filled with effortless and seamless transactions.

Drive purposeful customer journeys

One highlight which truly resonated with us was when many of our attendees agreed in unison – drive growth that matters. Creating experiences that support customer needs consistently can build not only long-term trust but also empower banks and fintechs to take risks and unlock groundbreaking innovations for all.  

For many looking to elevate their customer journeys, open banking represents the powerful enabler for Malaysia’s banks and fintechs to:

• Support a variety of customer journeys seamlessly
• Empower individuals with secure, convenient and universal access to financial services

Open banking is the next step for Malaysia’s financial landscape, opening the floodgates to better customer experiences and greater industry collaboration. As Malaysia begins to embrace the future of open banking, the stage for a future of seamless financial experiences has only just begun.

If you’re reading this as a representative who attended our Twimbit roundtable – drop a comment and share your key takeaways we might have missed out on! Or, if you’re reading as a Twimbit client who wants to learn more, reach out to us at [email protected] and let’s discuss this further in an inquiry specific to your organization.

This roundtable was hosted by Publicis Sapient and Thought Machine, creating a wonderful opportunity for eminent FSI leaders to connect on a more personal level.

The Twimbit Blog provides an opportunity for Twimbit’s analysts to experiment and test ideas, gather user feedback and opinions, all while moving research forward. Because the content posted here does not undergo our standard review, all comments or opinions expressed hereunder are those of the individual contributors.