Mobile Payment systems in Malaysia: Its potentials & Consumers’ Adoption Strategy

Mobile phone is so popular today that it is designed with so many incredible features. One of the latest features is whereby phone user can use their mobile phone to do their payment. Unbelievable but true. It is where mobile user that uses this function supported by their Smartphone, Cellular phone, Personal Digital Assistance (PDA), or even mobile phone can buy groceries, electronic devices, clothing, books, and many more and make the payment using their mobile phone. The whole idea is similar to a credit card. The concept here is that user can make their payment or transaction using their mobile phone instead of bring whole load of cash. It is much safer and save the user a lot of time from traveling to the bank and queuing up to withdraws money.

The first mobile payment service, Telemoney, was launched in November 2001 in Malaysia. Telemoney was the first company that offers mobile payment services in Malaysia. One needs to have a GSM mobile phone and a Telemoney personal identification number in order to connect to a credit card, debit card, store valued card, bank account and also phone account. In April 2009, the revolution of mobile payment was seen when the first contactless mobile payment services were launches by Maxis communication together with Nokia, Visa, Maybank and Touch and Go. The features of the contactless mobile payment includes credit card, debit card, ticketing and transportation payments to be integrated into a mobile phone.

This innovation offers its customers a lot of benefits. Customers Life is more convenient when they are making payment for toll charges, transportation fees such as Rapid KL, convenience store, retail store, buying movie ticket online or e-ticket, as well as paying for parking fees. This speed up all transaction and customers need not bring any cash in hand. This indirectly will reduce crime rates. Moreover, customers need not to waste time queuing up to pay bill or even going to ATM to withdraw money. Customer’s data is secured by a pin fraud protection patent whereby it offers security and prevention from hackers. This leads to customer’s satisfaction and confidence in using the mobile payment. In addition, it acts as a competitive advantage for the country by helping the country to boost its economy. Multinational companies should collaborate together to enhance the mobile payment services in order to offer customers more new and innovative products in order to maintain customer’s loyalty.

The application of pre-paid cash card for consumers

A pre-paid cash card is a card that requires the consumer to top-up the card before using it. It means that you need to put some money into the card. Not really squeeze the money into the card. First, you need to go to the counter that provide top-up services and then the employee will help you to update the balance of the card, after that you can use it to buy thing.

Nowadays, pre-paid cash card is very common in our life. It is very convenient, safe, and portable. The consumer do not need to carry a lot of cash to buy thing, they just need to bring their pre-paid cash card only.

There are many application of pre-paid cash card:
1) Buy thing- Consumer can use pre-paid cash card in shopping centre and restaurant.
2) Pay bill- Electricity, water telephone bill and etc.
3) Toll fee- Pay toll fee in high way.

In Malaysia, we can only use pre-paid cash card to pay toll fee. That is Touch 'n Go.
Touch 'n Go is an electronic purse that used in toll expressway and highway operators as the sole payment system. Touch 'n Go uses contactless technology. The card is similar with credit card. User can continuously using the card as long as it is top-up before using it. It is very popular and convenient in Malaysia. It will help driver to save time when they paying toll fee. Besides that, user can use Touch 'n Go card to pay the bus fare.
The Octopus card is a stored value smart card that used to transfer electronic payments in online or offline systems in Hong Kong. It is used to collect fares for the territory's mass transit system. The Octopus card system was the first contactless smart card system around the world. The Octopus car is also used for payment at supermarkets, fast-food restaurants, car parks, and others.
The EZ-Link card is used for the payment of public transportation fares in Singapore. The card is commonly used for paying transportation fees in Mass Rapid Transit (MRT), Light Rail Transit (LRT) and public bus services. The card also serves as a supplementary identification and concession card for students in nationally recognised educational institutes.
The demand for pre-paid cash card is increasingly important and it has been implemented in the countries around the world. Hope that there will be strong improvement in the use of pre-paid cash card in Malaysia.

Credit Card Debts: Causes& Prevention

Open your wallet now, and count, how many credit cards you have?
Check on your monthly bills, how much you have to pay every month for your credit card debts?

Nowadays, nearly everyone has access to a credit card. Many of us like to put some bills onto credit card and try to delay the payment as long as possible. Credit card companies offered different interest rates and payment schedule which you think it is easier and cheaper to solve your bills. But, it actually makes users harder to pay off all the debts. Thus, it created more and more credit card debts and also the interest charges on overdue balances.

So, check out how to build a healthy financial status. We need to find out what the causes of credit card debts are and how we prevent it from threaten our financial health.

1) Poor financial management: we always spending money using credit cards, but when the bills reach your hand, you have no idea where you spent so large amount of money that month. Thus, we have to work out a plan on spending. Therefore, a budget for whole month is really needed. You can just write out your expenses daily, and compare to your income, so that you won’t spend more than you earn each month.

2) Zero saving or too little: once you recognize your expenses each month, figure out 5% - 10% of your income to set aside for emergencies or unexpected expenditure. People used to pay their car repair fees or medical expenses by credit cards since they have no saving for those unexpected fees. So, just prepare some saving to avoid unwanted debts or financial strain.

3) Spending habit: woman mostly, shop for a whole day and just using few credit cards on payment. But they have no idea how much they had spent for the whole day. Every time you pull out the credit card to pay at the counter, the debts is become higher and higher. Credit card is not cash which you can physically feel the thickness it appear in your wallet. So, you must record and limit the amount you spend every time you make payment.

4) Limit the cards in wallet: every credit card has its own set of terms and condition including varying interest rates, penalties, fees, and due dates. Try to bring one or two cards instead of five or six. If you focus all your expenses on two cards, you can easily found the total amount you spent. But, if you pay using different card every time, you will forget the amount you spent and interest rate for each card. Besides, try to compare each credit card companies and find out the lowest interest rates companies.

5) Pay on time: some people used to pay only the minimum amount of monthly bill. But, it actually makes you pay more interest in the future. Because of the universal default clause in credit cards terms and conditions, credit cards companies can raise your interest rate if you are late paying creditor or utility company. Therefore, never make a late payment and try to pay earlier since the interest calculated based on average daily balance. So, the earlier you pay the less interest you pay.

Electronic Currency

In the E-commerce world today, there are more and more advancement and technology in conducting this activity. As for the electronic payment system, people have implemented the electronic currency in today E-commerce trading.

Electronic currency is also known as electronic money, electronic cash, digital currency, digital cash as well as digital money. The use of the electronic money is done through the computer networks, the internet and also the digital stored value system. This money is only exchange electronically. It assisted in the online-based purchases and sales transaction conveniently.

Electronic benefit transfer (EBT) is one of the examples of the use of electronic currency. It is the business-to-business E-commerce which is use to made payment electronically. Additionally, E-Check is also one of the electronic currencies which function as the paper check. It is the electronic version of a paper check with some additional function as compare with the traditional paper check. It is a useful tool to make online shopping payment.

Users may be benefited much by using the electronic currency. It serves as a universal media of exchange which allowed users to make quick online payment ubiquity at anywhere anytime provided that there is an internet connection. With the speed of transferability, it enables the users to send and receive money instantly from anyone all around the globe.

On the other hand, it also provided a safe and secure system to make your payment. Various types of safeguard are there to identify the fraud, chargeback prevention, funds verification, PIN verification and others security system.

People also can invest in electronic currency to make more money. There are only few simple steps in order to enjoy the profits of this investment. A user does need to open an electronic currency account which is free of charge, purchases the electronic currency through the electronic currency processor in their account, invest it in the trustworthy HYIP programmes, transfer the electronic currency profits from HYIP system to your account, and lastly convert the electronic money into real money.

However, there are some issues identified in the use of electronic currency. Problem arises when it come to the collection of taxation. Additionally, electronic currency also creates the ease of possibility of money laundering.

In order to encourage the implementation of this new technology in the E-commerce world, more rules and regulation must be created to solve the inefficiencies in using the electronic currency so that E-commerce could achieve its full potential in the future.