KELANA JAYA, Dec 24 (Bernama) -- The Malaysian National Cooperative Movement or Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad (“ANGKASA” or the “Cooperative”), through its subsidiary, MyANGKASA Holdings Sdn. Bhd. (“MyANGKASA Holdings”), has today signed a Supplemental Agreement with Sukaniaga Sdn. Bhd. (“Sukaniaga”), an associate company of Orion IXL Berhad (“Orion IXL”), in relation to the concession to develop MyAzZahra Portal, to deliver digitalization of the online loan application process for cooperatives that provide an integrated cooperative credit system.

To recap, MyAzZahra Portal was developed 2 years ago from a partnership between MyANGKASA Holdings and Sukaniaga, where both parties signed an initial concession agreement to digitize the loan management system for the development, operation and maintenance of MyAzZahra Portal for 15 years till October 2033. The portal was subsequently launched officially on 17 January 2019 by the Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperative at ANGKASA’s headquarter, Wisma Ungku A. Aziz, Kelana Jaya, Selangor.

MyAzZahra Portal is accessible at www.myazzahra.com, where cooperative members can check their loan eligibility and apply for cooperative loans online from the panel of registered credit cooperatives. The portal enables the members to browse through the latest promotions from the registered cooperatives and manage all their financing-related matters online.

Speaking at the press conference held today at Wisma Ungku A. Aziz after the Supplementary Agreement Signing Ceremony, Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Haji Abdul Fattah Abdullah, President of ANGKASA said, “To ensure MyAzZahra Portal remains competitive and relevant, it is crucial that its services continue to expand from time to time, in line with today’s evolving digital needs. Hence, the portal has been enhanced with the addition of new offerings such as:-

i. Marketplace;
ii. Centralised call center;
iii. Business-to-Business (B2B) system (cooperative borrowings from financial institutions)
iv. Digital wallet or e-Wallet facility; and
v. Payment and collection gateway.

Furthermore, the portal also incorporates elements of artificial intelligence (“AI”) and business analytical solutions. This is just the beginning for ANGKASA in our efforts to bring digital transformation to the Cooperative and ensure that it is implemented successfully, as this is also aligned with ANGKASA’s aim to secure a digital bank license in the future.”

Chief Executive Officer of Sukaniaga, Encik Mohamad Shaharul Mohamad Shariff commented, “Our initiatives today mark an important milestone to move towards financial technology (“fintech”) services, benefitting 6.1 million registered cooperative members in Malaysia, and potentially 60 million cooperative members throughout the ASEAN region. With the new fintech services, members may now enjoy and take advantage of the “Buy Now, Pay Later” facility. Additionally, the portal will in the future provide digital wallet services that are integrated with a payment gateway, where members can benefit from the many available incentives and discounts.”

“Our digital transformation efforts are not limited to only within Malaysia, but will also be extended to include the cooperative movement through the ASEAN Co-operative Organization (“ACO”). I am confident that our initiatives will be well-received by the other ASEAN cooperatives, given the active involvement of ANGKASA in the cooperative movements in ASEAN countries.”

Apart from being the President of ANGKASA, Yang Berbahagia Dato’ Haji Abdul Fattah Abdullah is also the President of ACO. To-date, no organization has carried out initiatives to explore fintech in-depth, particularly for cooperatives movement, both in Malaysia and across the ASEAN region. With the growing cooperative industry, fintech can certainly help facilitate and strengthen businesses run by the various cooperatives in the region while serving the underserved and unbanked households.

MyAzZahra Portal was set up not only to connect the Cooperative with potential loan applicants, but to also provide an integrated system linking the Cooperative with panel financiers to offer direct financing in order to grow the businesses across various sectors under the Cooperative.

Photo
A photo from the ceremony can be downloaded from here: https://we.tl/t-t5MIvm7Xw7

Photo Caption (From left to right):

• Datuk Ahmad Jamil Hashim, Corporate Advisor of ANGKASA
• Tuan Hj Nasir Khan Yahya, Group Chief Executive Officer of ANGKASA
• Dato’ Abdul Fattah Abdullah, President of ANGKASA and Chairman of MyANGKASA Holdings Sdn Bhd
• En. Mohamad Shaharul Mohamad Shariff, Chief Executive Officer of Sukaniaga Sdn Bhd
• Datuk Shahrin Datuk Zahari, President of Sukaniaga Sdn Bhd

Jointly released by Angkatan Koperasi Kebangsaan Malaysia Berhad and Sukaniaga Sdn Bhd.