Magazines Archives - 2009 June

Card popularity soaring in Malaysia
Story 8 - Focus

Smart cards are being increasingly used in Malaysia — and not just to access the ATM or gain entry into a car park, gated community or office.

This platform has been making life easier for consumers, allowing them to carry less cash, and hence lowering the risk of theft. Retailers finding cash tran sactions cumbersome welcome it as a payment medium.

In Malaysia, more than 18 million holders of MyKad, a smart-chipembedded identification card that facilitates a host of government and private-sector applications, including convenient access to electronic records as well as health-care, business and retail services, and payments for purchases. One of the card’s functions is the MEPSCash e-purse, which allows users to store value in the MyKad chip and use the e-purse for cashless transactions of up to RM2,000 (US$573.47).

MyKad also serves as a loyalty card allowing shoppers to earn points from shopping at any retail outlet displaying the MyKad logo. These points are conver tible into electronic cash.

“There’s a secure chip on the card running its own operating system, and it has the ability to read and write multiple applications,” explains Shahzad K Sultan, managing director of IPS Sdn Bhd, the owner and operator of MEPSCash.

More sophisticated and secure

Smart cards are getting more sophisticated with the advent of contactless technology, which allows transactions via a proximity card reader that does not need to be in physical touch with the medium to read it. The noncontact slows down the card’s wear and tear as well.

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