Another name has officially launched in the Malaysian digital banking scene, and this time, it’s a fully homegrown one.
Boost Bank by Axiata and RHB launched today at an event officiated by our Prime Minister, Yang Amat Berhormat Dato’ Seri Anwar bin Ibrahim.
This digital bank is one of five that was approved by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and the Ministry of Finance (MOF).
Leveraging the expertise of Boost, the regional full spectrum fintech arm of Axiata, Boost Bank is pioneering what they call an “embedded onboarding journey”.
What that means is that all existing Premium Wallet users on the Boost eWallet app can seamlessly open a Boost Bank account.
The digital bank also taps into the expertise of RHB Banking Group (RHB). Boost Bank is the first digital bank in the market to merge the technology-first mindset of a fintech company with the trust and stability of a large financial institution.
The Boost Bank app is already available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
Creating an account is as simple as filling in personal details, then scanning the front and back of your IC.
To be eligible, you must be a Malaysian citizen and at least 18 years old. Verifying those details typically only takes the app a few minutes.
Boosting up the unbanked
Something we’ve heard a lot with digital banks is that they all aim to cater to the underserved community.
But what about the unserved community? As in, people who completely do not have any bank accounts to deposit money?
Typically, for digital banks, you would need to perform a fund transfer to the new account from an existing bank account under your own name.
Well, Boost Bank is actually one of the few banks in Malaysia that will enable users who do not have an existing bank account to be digitally onboarded.
The only restriction is that such users will have a transfer limit of RM10,000.
Boosting up savings
One of the starred features of Boost Bank is that users can enjoy daily interest rates of up to 3.6% p.a. with higher promotional interest rates with partners to be announced soon.
This 3.6% p.a. interest rate is made available for users who are in the exclusive rank of “Platinum President”.
To qualify for the rank, you would need to deposit a minimum of RM2,000 into Boost Bank’s Savings Jars and/or Savings Account.
Savings Jars are basically similar to GXBank’s Savings Pockets and AEON Bank’s Savings Pots, designed to cultivate healthy saving habits.
Where GXBank and AEON Bank have the same interest rates for their savings accounts and their savings Pockets/Pots, Boost Bank incentivises their Saving Jars with a higher interest rate. The Savings Account only goes up to 2.5% p.a. daily interest (if you’re ranked Platinum President).
The 3.6% rate is a promotional one that will last from now until August 31, 2024, before turning to a standard 3.2% rate.
Platinum President Boost Bank users will also automatically be upgraded to the highest rank on the Boost eWallet app. They can then earn up to 3x Boost Stars for every ringgit spent on eligible transactions once the accounts are linked.
On that note, Boost Bank users cannot actually spend their money right now through DuitNow QR transfers, but can do so by linking the bank to the Boost eWallet app.
There will also be upcoming partnership offers and additional rewards in the coming weeks called Partner Benefits, done in collaboration with Boost Bank’s partnered companies such as MYDIN.
Users can potentially earn higher promotional interest rates with these Partner Benefits on Boost Bank’s partners’ Savings Jars.
Other partnership promotions that users can look forward to across both West and East Malaysia include CelcomDigi, MYDIN, Bataras Sdn. Bhd., CKS RETAIL Sdn. Bhd., FARLEY (KCH) Sdn. Bhd., Servay Hypermarket (Sabah) Sdn. Bhd., and Boulevard Hypermarket and Departmental Store Sdn. Bhd.
| Loyalty Rank | Boost Bank’s Savings Jars Daily Interest Rate (Weekly Return) | Boost Bank’s Savings Account Daily Interest Rate | Boost eWallet app’s Boost Star Earnings |
| Platinum President with Partner Benefits | Higher promotional interest rates coming soon | N/A | 3x on eligible transactions |
| Platinum President | 3.6% p.a. from 6 June to 31 August, during promotional period (Standard rate: 3.2%) | 2.5% p.a. | 3x on eligible transactions |
| Boost Basic | 1.5% p.a. (Fast-track to Platinum President rank by depositing RM2000) | 0.5% p.a. | 1x on eligible transactions |
The interest is calculated based on the following formula: Daily Interest Earned = End-of-day Balance x (Interest Rate / Total Days of the Year).
The interest earned is computed daily at 10 decimal points and paid out weekly at two decimal points.
The end-of-day balance refers to the balance in your Savings Account and/or Savings Jar(s) at 23:59:59 on a given day.
With future plans to boost
An upcoming product development from Boost Bank that is already in the pipeline is their debit card.
At the launch, two colourways were showcased—one black and the other red.
According to the roadmap, these retail debit cards are expected to be released in July this year.
As the digital bank continues to grow, Boost Bank will expand its digital bank app features and products to better serve the needs of all Malaysians.
We’ll be exploring more of Boost Bank alongside the recently launched AEON Bank as well, so stay tuned for in-depth looks into both new digital banking offerings from us.
