GX Bank Berhad (or simply GXBank) has announced to have received approval from the Ministry of Finance and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) to commence operations, effective 1 September 2023. According to its press statement, the bank has successfully completed an operational readiness assessment and received its green light ahead of the April 2024 deadline set by BNM.
For those unfamiliar, GXBank is a subsidiary of GXS Bank Pte Ltd, the digital bank joint venture between Grab Holdings Limited, Singapore Telecommunications Ltd and a consortium of Malaysian investors, including the Kuok Group. It is the first of five applicants that have been given the green light for commencing operations in Malaysia. Helming the bank is its CEO Pei Si Lai and a board of directors led by Datuk Zaiton Mohd Hassan, supported by a team of over 200 employees from both the technology and finance sectors.
With the commencement of operations, the newly approved digital bank will first start off by beta testing its app and services with its own employees, as well as those from Grab and Kuok Group. GXBank adds that it will roll out the test to a wider pool of users in stages, with hopes to refine the user experience through continuous feedback before officially launching it to the broader public.
“GXBank will leverage technology and innovation to serve the needs of the unserved and underserved individuals, and micro and small medium enterprises (MSME),” the bank said in the press statement. “Additionally, the digital-only bank will support customers’ needs through various channels including a bank app and 24/7 customer support via multiple platforms.”
The four other digital banks announced by BNM are also formed by consortiums led by different companies, including Axiata (via Boost Holdings Sdn Bhd) and RHB Bank Berhad, Sea Limited and YTL Digital Capital Sdn Bhd, AEON Financial Service Co Ltd and AEON Credit Service Berhad, and finally a consortium led by KAF Investment Bank Sdn Bhd. It is also worth noting that Be U by Bank Islam and Rize by Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia are two digital banks formed prior to GXBank, but were created using BNM’s existing conventional banking license.
(Source: GXBank press release)
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