Sweet success: Team RoadTo20K from UM embracing each other after being announced champions.
WHILE digital payments appear to be the way forward, they also present gaps and risks.
Tasked with engineering solutions to address these threats, team RoadTo20K from Universiti Malaya (UM) emerged champion with BizKuKu at the PayHack 2025 intervarsity hackathon.
An all-in-one digital platform, their innovation helps Malaysian micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) with low digital literacy easily register, manage and scale their businesses.
From Companies Commission of Malaysia registration, banking and digital payments to marketplace integration, financial insights, and artificial intelligence (AI)-powered funding recommendations, BizKuKu provides end-to-end support for sustainable growth.
The UM team won RM20,000 at the finals – an intense 48-hour sprint from Aug 2 to 3 that saw 17 teams battle it out, transforming their proposals into working prototypes tackling major pain points in the financial services industry.
Teams Roti CanAI and Da House from Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU) placed second and fourth, respectively.
Pineapple Donkey from Heriot-Watt University Malaysia secured third place, while TapirPay from Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) came in fifth.
USM also took home the Pitch Perfect Award through team PEPE, while X-Chain from Universiti Malaysia Sarawak clinched the Hustler Award.
Besides the top prize, the RM55,000 prize pool included RM12,000 and RM6,000 for the first and second runners-up, RM3,000 and RM2,000 to fourth and fifth places, with all other finalists receiving RM1,000 each.
The student innovations ranged from fraud and cyberthreat detection to sustainability-focused payment platforms.
The finalists were selected from over 400 students representing 21 public and private universities who joined the hackathon organised by Payments Network Malaysia Sdn Bhd (PayNet), through its environmental, social and governance (ESG) initiative PayNet Akar.
Held in collaboration with Ant International and supported by APU, the hackathon challenged students to solve tomorrow’s problems today by pushing boundaries in digital payments innovation, cybersecurity, MSME enablement, and ESG integration.
PayNet chief people officer and PayNet Akar head Shafenaz Farouk said PayHack is a platform for young innovators to reimagine what’s possible and to lead with purpose, collaboration and creativity.
“Through PayHack, we’re nurturing the next generation of changemakers who will shape the future of payments with innovation, integrity and impact,” he said.
PayHack 2025 kicked off in June with more than 90 teams submitting proposals, of which 33 advanced to the semifinals and received mentorship from experts at PayNet, Ant International, Bank Islam Malaysia and FWD Insurance.
