Maybank rolls out fintech sandbox

PETALING JAYA: Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) has launched a regional, collaborative financial technology (fintech) sandbox to provide opportunities for start-ups and innovators to develop and test new ideas.
The first of its kind in Asean, the Maybank Sandbox is a complete fintech ecosystem that provides all the essential components for free, to fast-track the growth of fintech developers across the region.
Maybank group president and CEO Datuk Abdul Farid Alias said while many Asean countries are investing in developing and nurturing fintechs, growth is still slow as compared to more established fintech hubs like in the US and Europe.
“Having a great idea is not good enough to sell a product.
Fintechs need to be able to develop a minimum viable product (MVP) to attract the right investments and funding. This is where many fintechs face challenges – in their ability to move from ideation to a working MVP,” he explained.
Maybank Group chief technology officer Mohd Suhail Amar Suresh said the Maybank Sandbox fills this gap by providing fintechs with environment, tools, simulated data, APIs (application programming interface) and the ability to reach out for talent within a safe and secure environment.
“What Maybank is offering is a platform for start-ups, fintech companies and any interested party to collaborate, experiment, incubate and prototype any idea or innovative solution they may have,” he explained.
Suhail said the Maybank Sandbox is unique as it is accessible to developers in the region and across the globe, to get connected with ideators, academia, businesses and their peers to create innovative end-to-end solutions – within an ecosystem that supports all emerging technology trends such as digital, Internet of Things, social, cloud and open source.

An idea put forward in the Maybank Sandbox can include a new service, product, tool, game or code fix. It can be created by anyone who would usually provide key information such as high-level scope and use cases. A developer can access the Sandbox and choose to pursue an idea which may be of interest, working independently or in collaboration with multiple developers. Once the solution is completed, the developer(s) can publish the solution back to the idea creator.
Suhail said the Sandbox was designed to meet the unique needs of four key user groups, namely the public, fintechs, technologists and technology enthusiasts as well as academia. The public could raise ideas for new services, products or facilities while fintechs get access to a platform to develop, test and publish their ideas. Technologists and enthusiasts, meanwhile, can connect to a large community of peers, while academia can use it as a platform to teach and learn.
The Maybank Sandbox can be accessed at www.maybanksandbox.com