Maybank launches fintech sandbox
Beta testing of Maybank’s sandbox
Malaysia’s largest bank, Maybank, has unveiled its fintech sandbox to let ASEAN start-ups develop and test new ideas.
As the “first in ASEAN”, the Maybank FinTech Sandbox offers a place “free of charge” to help developers throughout the region. The bank is keen to tap into ideas around cloud, the internet of things (IoT) and open source technologies.
The sandbox offers the bank’s APIs, banking data analysis, and simulation and development tools to create new online and mobile applications.
Group president and CEO of Maybank, Datuk Abdul Farid Alias, says “having a great idea is not enough to sell a product” and fintech firms “should be able to develop the minimum viable product (MVP) to attract investment and funding”.
Farid says although many ASEAN countries invest in and develop their fintech sectors, “growth is still slower” compared with centres in the US and Europe.
The bank adds that its sandbox allows team members from different countries to collaborate in a virtual environment.
Anything you can do…
Last month, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), the nation’s central bank, approved four fintech start-ups to operate within its regulatory sandbox.
BNM had called out to fintech start-ups in April for ideas to improve the financial services sector. The bank’s Financial Technology Enabler Group (FTEG) announced it was open to concepts through its “Fintech Hacks” initiative.
