Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, announced Wednesday its partnership with Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet) as a Cloud Partner for its newly launched PayNet Fintech Hub – Malaysia’s first dedicated fintech-focused community and accelerator.

Spearheaded by PayNet, the hub is set to become a catalyst for Malaysia’s fintech sector by offering startups access to capital, industry networks, financial incentives, and global expertise, the duo said in a statement.

As one of the Hub’s key Cloud Partners, Alibaba Cloud will play a pivotal role in driving innovation and empowering the next generation of fintech players in Malaysia.

“Malaysia’s fintech ecosystem is expanding rapidly, and we are excited to support this growth by equipping startups with the cloud infrastructure, AI tools, and global connectivity they need to scale,

“Through our advanced cloud infrastructure and AI capabilities, we are committed to shaping the future of intelligent fintech in Malaysia,” said Kun Huang, General Manager of Malaysia, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence.

As part of the collaboration, startups and Fintech Hub Community members will have access to the Alibaba Cloud Startup Catalyst Program to enjoy benefits.

This is including up to $120,000 in cloud credits and three months of Global Technical Support for the price of one month; 12-month Alibaba Cloud Academy Membership and access to the AI Alliance Community; invitations to strategic ecosystem events, including global startup showcases and investor engagements hosted by Alibaba Cloud.

“Having Alibaba Cloud as a Cloud Partner for the PayNet Fintech Hub empowers participating Malaysian fintechs with access to world-class tools, technical expertise and global exposure,

“This partnership will help accelerate the growth of Malaysia’s fintech ecosystem, creating new opportunities for startups to innovate and scale faster and smarter, as well as compete on a global level，” said Gary Yeoh, PayNet’s Chief Marketing Officer.

This partnership reflects Alibaba Cloud’s vision to nurture a thriving AI ecosystem in Malaysia, equipping local innovators with world-class tools to lead on the global stage, said the statement.

Established in 2009, Alibaba Cloud offers a complete suite of cloud services to customers worldwide, including elastic computing, database, storage, network virtualization services, large-scale computing, security, big data analytics, machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) services.

PayNet is Malaysia’s national payments network aims to accelerate the country’s payment flows by making the digital payment infrastructure more accessible, widespread, and secure.

The firm’s comprehensive retail payments suite – including DuitNow (QR and Transfer), JomPAY (Bill Payments), FPX (Online), MyDebit (Domestic Debit), MEPS, and IBG (Interbank GIRO) – provides extensive coverage across the nation, forming a core part of daily life in Malaysia.

Additionally, PayNet’s real-time retail QR payments network, DuitNow, is interoperable with domestic schemes in Singapore, Thailand, and Indonesia, facilitating seamless cross-border transactions with these countries.

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