He said that there were many Bumiputera companies that were eligible and deserved to be awarded the digital bank licence.

Yesterday, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) said three consortiums, namely Boost Holdings Sdn Bhd and RHB Bank Berhad; GXS Bank and Kuok Brothers; and SEA and YTL Digital Capital will be licensed under the Financial Services Act 2013.

Meanwhile, a consortium comprising AEON Financial Service, AEON Credit Service Berhad and MoneyLion Inc, as well as one led by KAF Investment Bank will be licensed under the Islamic Financial Services Act 2013.

BNM governor Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus said these digital banks, which were selected by the finance ministry, were set to advance financial inclusion even further while increasing opportunities for members of the community to participate in the economy.

Saifuddin questioned the rationale for choosing some of these consortiums taking into consideration the services they were expected to provide.

“I don’t think these large consortiums can assist ordinary people who operate businesses at pasar malam (night markets) or food stalls in small towns around the country.

“Furthermore, (some of) these consortiums are located in Singapore and are listed in the US stock exchange. Yet they were given licenses to operate here,” he said in a Facebook post.

“The digital banks in the country should be playing the role similar to that of Grameen Bank and Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia, by assisting vulnerable groups”.

Grameen Bank in Bangladesh – founded by Nobel Peace Prize winner Muhammad Yunus – provides micro-financing to the poor community in the country without any collateral.

Meanwhile, Amanah Ikhtiar was set up in 1987, with the aim of reducing poverty among the low-income group by providing micro-credit funding to them in a bid to improve their lives.