AI Weekly Malaysia

Grab has expanded its PayLater service to work with any physical merchant displaying a DuitNow QR code, letting users scan via the Grab app and split payments. The feature is currently rolling out to a limited group of users before potential wider availability.

Why: For Malaysian SaaS and commerce builders, this means Grab PayLater is now a viable BNPL payment option at virtually any offline DuitNow QR point-of-sale, not just Grab's own ecosystem. If you build POS, payments, or retail tooling, expect merchants and consumers to ask about DuitNow QR + PayLater integration and plan for how BNPL routing over national QR infrastructure affects settlement flows and fees.

Grab PayLater can now be used at any physical merchant displaying a DuitNow QR code, not just Grab-specific QR standees. The feature is rolling out to a whitelisted group of users, who also earn up to 2x GrabCoins when paying via PayLater on a DuitNow QR code.

Why: If you build or sell into Malaysian retail payments, BNPL is now effectively universal at the point of sale via DuitNow QR—any merchant with the standard national QR code is a potential BNPL checkout. SaaS founders in POS, e-commerce, or fintech should evaluate whether their flows or merchant onboarding need to account for Grab PayLater as a payment rail alongside standard DuitNow QR processing.

Ant International's embedded finance unit Bettr has partnered with Muslim Pro to offer Shariah-compliant Umrah financing directly inside the app, letting eligible Malaysians split pilgrimage costs into 12-24 month instalments. The facility uses a Tawarruq (Commodity Murabahah) structure, with commodity transactions processed via Sedania As Salam Capital's AS-SIDQ platform and the structure endorsed by Masryef Advisory.

Why: For Malaysian fintech and SaaS founders, this is a concrete example of embedded finance being layered into a non-finance app with 190M+ downloads — the pattern of integrating credit assessment, Shariah-compliant structuring, and digital commodity trading into an existing lifestyle app is directly relevant if you're building BNPL or instalment products. Developers should note Bettr's credit models extend to gig workers and small business owners, which broadens the addressable user base for similar embedded lending plays.