Boost in talks with Education Ministry to implement cashless payment system in schools

Boost is the leading lifestyle e-wallet in the country.

Boost said it is in talks with the Education Ministry to introduce a cashless payment system in schools.

Mohd Khairil Abdullah, CEO of Axiata Digital Services, the parent company of the homegrown e-wallet platform, said the focus now is in deciding the right cashless form factor.

“We’ve had some discussions with the Education Ministry. Our product is a service that is available on mobile phones but we can see how it could be an issue as some kids can’t bring handphones to school,” he said.  

“So now we’re looking at different form factors for the kids.”

Khairil explained that one of the form factors that was discussed with Education Ministry is a band that students can wear around their hand.

“There were some talks on whether students will have to wear a band. But, of course, we have to address some issues that may arise like what happens if the band gets lost?” he said.

He says cashless payment can be used for various school-related transactions such as making purchases at the canteen and bookshops.

In March, The Star reported that Education Minister Dr Maszlee Malik said that his ministry is in discussions with Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) to make schools cashless.

He explained that the ministry and BSN have a consensus to carry out a pilot project in selected schools.

Khairil said that Boost is already available in a number of public universities, including Universiti Teknologi Mara (UiTM) campuses, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS).

“Given that we have done a pretty good job in universities, obviously schools are sort of the next extension, right?” he said.

He also claimed Boost is used extensively at UMS.

“My favourite is UMS in Kota Kinabalu, Sabah. In that small campus we have 47 Boost merchants. Boost is now being accepted for anything from fees to paying fines and more,” he said,

“We also found out that the university itself is using the app to transfer stipend to students. Some students who are not very well off receive monthly endowments and the disbursement of the money will be channelled from the university to the students via Boost.”

Khairil said users can expect to see some schools adopting the cashless payment system fully in the “next quarter or two quarters”.