SK Invests 70 Billion KRW in AirAsia Subsidiary 'BigPay'

AirAsia Subsidiary 'BigPay'

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Yoon-joo] SK and AirAsia, Malaysia's largest low-cost carrier (LCC), have joined forces for a fintech business.

On the 6th, SK Southeast Asia Investment Corporation announced that it invested USD 60 million (approximately KRW 70 billion) in 'Big Pay,' a leading fintech company in Malaysia.

Big Pay, a subsidiary of Malaysian low-cost airline AirAsia, provides payment and domestic and international remittance services in Malaysia and Singapore. Big Pay has been recognized as a growth driver for AirAsia since the COVID-19 pandemic. It is especially regarded as highly competitive in the electronic wallet sector (a system that stores mobile credit cards and accounts on smartphones for payment). Additionally, Big Pay has already secured payment and remittance business licenses in Thailand, the Philippines, and other regions, enabling fintech business expansion throughout Southeast Asia.

Through this investment, SK secured the rights to participate in Big Pay's projects as a 'strategic partner' and an option to invest an additional USD 40 million (approximately KRW 45 billion) in the future.

SK's strategy is to leverage its artificial intelligence, data analytics capabilities, and fintech business experience to capture the Southeast Asian fintech market together with Big Pay. In particular, SK aims to expand the business model by offering installment payments, loans, and customer-tailored financial product brokerage services to provide a 'one-stop' fintech service.

According to U.S. market research firm Statista and others, Malaysia has a smartphone penetration rate exceeding 80%, and the growth rate of online transactions is also increasing significantly every year, indicating a bright outlook for the fintech industry. Among these, the electronic wallet market is still in its early growth stage and holds high potential for the future.

Meanwhile, SK recently joined as a financial investor in the internet-only bank business consortium led by Big Pay. This consortium reportedly includes MIDF, a financial group under PNB, one of Malaysia's sovereign wealth funds, and Eclat, a Singaporean private equity fund. The Central Bank of Malaysia plans to select up to five internet-only banks early next year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.