PayNet, Malaysia’s national payments network, has signed a new memorandum of understanding with Ant International to expand cross-border digital payment options for Malaysians.

The agreement was formalized during MyFintech Week 2025 in Kuala Lumpur.

The partnership will allow Malaysians to use DuitNow QR-enabled e-wallets and banking apps at over 100 million Alipay+ merchants worldwide.

Both firms said they will also collaborate on fraud prevention, AI-driven security, talent development, and sustainability initiatives.

Ant International operates Alipay+, a global wallet payment gateway used by merchants in multiple countries.

PayNet’s DuitNow QR is Malaysia’s national QR standard for digital payments.

The companies said the partnership aims to make payments abroad more seamless for Malaysians and to support the development of Malaysia’s digital payments infrastructure.

.source-ref{font-size:0.85em;color:#666;display:block;margin-top:1em;}a.ask-tia-citation-link:hover{color:#11628d !important;background:#e9f6f5 !important;border-color:#11628d !important;text-decoration:none !important;}@media only screen and (min-width:768px){a.ask-tia-citation-link{font-size:11px !important;}}

🔗 Source: PayNet

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Malaysia’s domestic digital payment success creates foundation for global expansion

The timing of this global QR expansion reflects Malaysia’s remarkable domestic digital payment growth over recent years.

Malaysian digital payment transactions per person doubled from 144 in 2019 to 291 in 2022, demonstrating strong local adoption that now supports international scaling 1.

This domestic success provides PayNet with the user base and transaction volume needed to negotiate meaningful partnerships with global payment networks like Alipay+.

The partnership leverages Malaysia’s established DuitNow QR infrastructure, which has proven its reliability through this rapid scaling period.

When payment networks have strong domestic foundations, they can more effectively expand internationally because they offer real value to global partners through their existing merchant and consumer ecosystems.

2️⃣ Cross-border QR payments address significant economic inefficiencies

Malaysia’s push toward cashless systems reflects substantial cost savings that extend to international transactions.

Electronic payment systems cost only 0.42% of GDP compared to 1.43% for cash-heavy systems, according to European Central Bank research cited in Malaysia’s digital payment strategy 2.

Cross-border cash transactions and currency exchanges create even higher costs and friction for travelers and businesses.

By enabling Malaysians to use their domestic apps abroad, this partnership eliminates foreign exchange fees, currency conversion hassles, and the need to carry cash while traveling.

The 100 million merchant network accessible through Alipay+ represents a significant infrastructure advantage that individual Malaysian banks or e-wallet providers could not achieve independently.

……