Finexus is proud to announce the approval from Jabatan Tenaga Kerja Semenanjung Malaysia (JTKSM) to deposit foreign workers’ salaries directly into Kayaaku™ Wallet, as well as the e-wallets of its subscribing programme partners and white labellers.
This milestone offers a seamless, cost-effective, and efficient payroll solution for companies in Malaysia to meet the unique needs of their foreign workforce.
“Three compelling factors make salary crediting via an ewallet a logical and practical solution for both employers and employees. First, the demand for such a solution is clear, with foreign workers making up 15% of the Malaysian workforce.
“Second, bank account ownership among foreign workers is considerably low in Malaysia; for example, only 22% of plantation foreign workers and 55% of urban foreign workers have bank accounts.
“And third, 74% of foreign workers own a smartphone and 90% have internet access via their smartphone, making e-wallet a viable payroll solution for employers hiring foreign workers,” says Clement Loh, Group CEO of Finexus, referencing a 2017 World Bank report.
Many of the foreign workers in Malaysia, reported to be 2.12 million in February this year by the Home Ministry, struggled to even meet the basic requirements to open a bank account due to a lack of proper documentation, according to the report.
Hence, without bank accounts, employers are often forced to rely on cash for salary payments, which is not only inconvenient but also lacks a digital record for accurate and timely bookkeeping, as well as streamlined account reconciliation.
Therefore, Kayaaku™ e-wallet offers a secure, convenient solution. By enabling direct salary deposits to e-wallets, companies can digitalise their payroll and account reconciliation for streamlined operations.
Foreign workers can securely access their funds quickly and easily using the e-wallet app, eliminating the need for cash and significantly reducing security risks to protect their hard-earned money.
Benefits of salary crediting to Kayaaku™ e-wallet / prepaid cards for employers
Benefits of using Kayaaku™ e-wallet / prepaid cards for foreign workers
With Finexus, companies with foreign workers can credit salaries by
Indeed, most sectors allowing employment of foreign workers reported higher growth rates in 2Q 2024 compared to 1Q 2024, with construction and agriculture sectors growing at over 5%, followed by manufacturing at close to 3% and lastly services at over 1%, according to the recent BNM Quarterly Bulletin Second Quarter 2024.
These growths indicate a possible need to increase foreign workforce and thereby, an urgency to employ payroll digitalisation for foreign workers as well, especially when most are hired for unskilled jobs (80% between 2010 to 2017) according to Khazanah Research Institute.
“In conclusion, we believe digitalisation should extend to all areas of a business, including payroll for foreign workers. By adopting an e-Wallet, businesses can automate and schedule salary payments without additional costs or time for this service, while also benefiting from long-term savings through streamlined account reconciliations,” says Loh.
