BANK Negara Malaysia (BNM) and Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) have launched a cross-border QR code payment linkage between Malaysia and Singapore.

The linkage will allow customers of participating financial institutions to make retail payments by scanning DuitNow QR and NETS QR codes.

BNM said the DuitNow-NETS QR code payment linkage is a key milestone in the ongoing collaboration between Malaysia and Singapore to enhance cross-border payment connectivity.

BNM governor Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus said the move is a “significant step forward in realising the vision of an Asean network of fast, efficient and interconnected retail payment systems”.

“The QR linkage between Malaysia and Singapore will benefit millions of commuters across the causeway as well as business and leisure travellers,” she said in a statement.

“It will also boost retail businesses in both countries. We will continue to work closely with our partners to accelerate our digitalisation agenda towards increased regional economic and financial integration.”

BNM said the initiative is a testament to both countries’ commitment to improving the cost, speed, access and transparency of cross-border payments, in line with the Asean Payment Connectivity Initiative and the G20 Roadmap for Enhancing Cross-border Payments.

With pre-pandemic annual traffic between the two countries averaging 12 million visitors, the central bank said the payment linkage will provide merchants and consumers with a more seamless and efficient means to make and receive payments.

It said the payment linkage will support in-person payments through the scanning of physical QR codes displayed by merchants and online cross-border e-commerce transactions.

The service is made possible through the strong collaboration of various industry players from both countries, including Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Network for Electronic Transfers (Singapore) Pte Ltd, the Association of Banks in Singapore, and participating financial institutions from both countries.

In the next phase, BNM and MAS plan to expand the payment linkage to enable cross-border account-to-account fund transfers and remittances, which would allow users to make real-time fund transfers between the two countries conveniently using just the recipient’s mobile phone number via DuitNow and PayNow.

The service is expected to go live by the end of the year, said BNM. – Bernama, March 31, 2023.