Grab today officially introduced its GrabPay mobile wallet in Malaysia. Integrated in the familiar Grab app, customers can now conveniently pay for Grab services as well as make purchases at various stores and F&B outlets with Grab Credits. Grab also announced key partnerships with Maybank, KLIA Ekspres and merchants like Tealive and KGB Burgers, ensuring nationwide availability of the service at launch.
Previously, GrabPay only accepted debit or credit cards. But now, you can top up and spend money or GrabPay credits in your mobile wallet via the Grab app.
Grab Credits in the mobile wallet allows you to pay for Grab’s services such as GrabCar, GrabTaxi, and GrabFood. That’s not all. You can also use the Grab app to pay at merchants or partners with the GrabPay QR code. There are currently over 500 merchant partners, centred around food and beverage businesses, spanning eight major cities nationwide. You’ll be able to use GrabPay for dining in Klang Valley, Penang, Johor Bahru, Ipoh, Melaka, Kota Kinabalu, Kuching and Kuantan.
Grab targets to double this number in the coming months.
Some of the outlets consist of famous chains such as Tealive and TeoChew Chendul, as well as local city favourites like Devi’s Corner, KGB Burger and TedBoy Bakery, China House (Penang), Burps & Giggles (Ipoh), Kopi Ping (Kota Kinabalu), Big Bowl Ice (Melaka) and Coffee Gallery (Kuantan).
The cool thing about GrabPay is that you can also make peer-to-peer money transfers without surcharge to other GrabPay users.
GrabPay joins rival digital wallets like vcash, Kiple, Boost, fave and Touch ‘n Go in making a cashless society closer to reality. It’s still early days but more players will drive mass adoption of mobile payments in Malaysia.
Partnerships
A key partnership Grab announced was with Maybank. In the future, you’ll be able to use GrabPay Credits not only at GrabPay merchants but at Maybank’s network of QR-enabled merchants. This would make GrabPay already one of the most widely accepted payment methods in the country.
Likewise, Maybank customers who use GrabPay as a payment for rides and other Grab services will enjoy exclusive benefits and rewards.
Another partner joining the fray is KLIA Ekspres. Effective mid-July, commuters will be able to use GrabPay Credits to pay for their rides to/from KLIA, KLIA2 and KL Sentral. GrabPay is the first mobile wallet KLIA Ekspres is partnering for added consumer convenience.
Nascent industry
According to Bank Negara, more than 80 percent of transactions in Malaysia still happen in cash. Cash handling and services also cost more than MYR1.8 billion a year to the banking industry. Electronic-based payment may help save up to one percent of the country’s economy due to lower retail payment cost, compared to cash.
Malaysia is rapidly moving towards a high-value, digital-first economy, and has introduced progressive policies such as the Malaysian Financial Sector Blueprint (MFSC) 2011-2020. The MFSC aims to increase the number of electronic payments per capita to 200 by 2020.
How to get started
If you’re not already a Grab user, download the free app for iOS and Android. Fire up the app, register for an account.
To make a payment, tap on the “G” icon on the top right of the Grab app, scan the unique Grab QR code at the merchant’s outlet and enter the bill amount. Credits are deducted from your mobile wallet.
Being on the Grab platform has its perks. Each transaction on GrabPay Credits earns you GrabRewards points which you can use to redeem items from the GrabRewards catalogue.
There are several ways to top up your GrabPay Credits – by visiting 7-Eleven outlets, via credit/debit cards, or online banking.
As a starting point, you’re limited to MYR500 worth of credits in your wallet. However, if you’ve verified your ID (using your NRIC), the limit goes up to MYR1,500.
As mentioned earlier, it’s easy to transfer money/credit to friends and family. You can do it via phone numbers or the unique Grab QR code within the Grab app.
For more information, visit www.grab.com.
