SHAH ALAM: Touch ‘n Go’s TNG Digital Sdn Bhd’s (TNGD) collaboration with Amanah Saham Nasional Bhd (ASNB) aims to see one million unitholders linking their investment accounts to the e-wallet in the next 12 months.
Existing ASNB unitholders will be able to invest in the unit trusts available through the GOinvest feature in the e-wallet without needing to visit a branch or queue up any longer, said TNGD chief executive officer Alan Ni.
Ni said this marks the first e-wallet to offer investments in ASNB unit trusts for Malaysians through the Touch ‘n Go eWallet.
He said the introduction of ANSB to its growing financial services portfolio aligns with the commitment for digital inclusion and accessibility for everyone.
“This has really been about financial inclusion for the people, including those in the rural areas.
“We want to make investing and saving for the future as convenient and seamless as possible,” he said at a briefing after the launch of Labur Online Laju here yesterday.
There are now 12 million unitholders that are able to access their accounts through the e-wallet and this is expected to increase, said TNGD chief financial services officer Desmond Teoh.
Teoh said the expected increase will be based on the speed in linkage and an easy way to buy funds for users.
“For now, we are seeing ASNB funds and this form of investing has always been slightly known among the older generation.
“What we want is to give the younger population an easy way to invest and save for their future,” he said.
He said the use of e-wallet is now popular among the younger generation and it hopes to instill a behavioural shift for saving rather than spending.
However, the collaboration will only allow existing users to invest in funds using the e-wallet, whereas Malaysians looking to open new accounts will need to visit the physical branches for now.
“This is something that is in the pipeline – new users opening accounts using the wallet.
“We are looking at this feature being enabled maybe at the end of this year or in the first quarter of next year,” he noted.
Meanwhile, ASNB chief executive officer Muzzaffar Othman said unitholders will not be able to redeem or withdraw from their unit trust using the e-wallet for now.
He said it is something in the pipeline but unitholders will still need to visit the physical branches if they wish to withdraw money.
“What we want people to realise is this isn’t a savings account but rather an investment fund that is meant to be long term,” he said.
