FAOM – a voice for the financial technology community

KUALA LUMPUR: Newly-formed FinTech Association of Malaysia (FAOM) aims to help facilitate ecosystem collaboration among relevant financial technology (fintech) industry stakeholders in Malaysia with the essential goals of supporting the Malaysian fintech community, while building awareness and trust in fintech start-ups to advocate for positive growth in the industry.
FAOM protem president David Fong said there are up to 80 fintech startups in Malaysia and that FAOM has 54 members now. “The important thing is that there is a common voice to represent the community to speak with the regulators now,” he told a press conference at the launch of FAOM here last Friday.
Fong said the biggest challenges for start-ups is to become commercially successful and big. Particularly for fintech start-ups, he said there are many regulatory challenges to overcome.
“Part of our job is to make sure that fintech start-ups have a smooth journey to enhance their chances of progressing towards success and helping them to engage with regulators and other stakeholders in the industry.
“Other challenges are funding, where bringing potential investors into fintech will be an important role that we play. Linking up fintech players with established companies is also how we can help them (start-ups) to become successful,” he said.

The association also aims to connect key enablers in the ecosystem and create a national platform that would be the leading hub for fintech innovations and investments in the region.
The development is aligned with Budget 2017, where the government is set to place a strong emphasis on developing the nation’s digital economy. It also coincides with the announcement by Bank Negara Malaysia on the Regulator Sandbox Framework and the Securities Commission’s move to regulate equity crowd-funding and peer-to-peer financing.