Malaysia grants licences to two new digital banks
The Ministry of Finance Malaysia (MoF) and Bank Negara Malaysia, the country’s central bank, have approved two new digital banks to commence operations, a move that is expected to increase competition in the banking sector and drive further innovation across the region.

Central Bank of Malaysia and MoF approve two new digital banks
The first licence has been granted to KAF Digital Berhad, an operating entity developed through an Islamic digital bank consortium comprising Carsome, MoneyMatch, Jirnexu and StoreHub, with KAF Investment Bank Berhad at the helm.
The licencing took effect on 20 December 2024, with KAF Digital Berhad now formerly operating as KAF Digital Bank, providing shariah-compliant digital banking services, led by CEO Rafiza Ghazali.
In a statement regarding the licencing, KAF noted that KAF Digital Bank will “soon move forward into an Alpha Testing Phase with a small select user group prior to progressing into a Beta Phase with a wider user group”.
KAF Digital Bank will then be “made ready for public sign-ups” once these two closed-group testing phases have concluded. The statement does not specify the duration of these phases.
The second licence has been handed to YTL Digital Bank Berhad, formed through a joint venture between YTL Digital Capital Sdn Bhd and Sea Limited.
YTL Digital Bank Berhad will operate as Ryt Bank, and, with its licence also effective from 20 December 2024, is set to “launch to the public over the next few months”, according to a company statement.
Ryt Bank will provide a suite of services, including single-text input fund transfers and tailored financial insights, via its AI-equipped platform, Ryt AI, described as a “personalised, AI-powered private banker”.