Ant International Unveils Global Development Centre in Malaysia, Expanding Commitment to AI, Talent, Trust and Digital Innovation

(BUSINESS WIRE) -- Ant International today officially opened its Global Development Centre (GDC) in Kuala Lumpur, deepening its long-term commitment to Malaysia and Southeast Asia, and strengthening the country's role as a strategic hub for global innovation, digital talent, and next-generation financial technology. The unveiling ceremony was officiated by the Prime Minister of Malaysia, YAB Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

Ant International’s GDC is located at The Exchange 106, within TRX, Malaysia’s dedicated international financial centre.

Cyril Han, CEO of Ant Group said, "With a visionary leadership and a vibrant business and tech community, Malaysia is on the way to becoming a leading regional and global hub for digital and AI innovation. In the next 6 to 12 months, the agentic AI revolution will be in full swing, bringing about a revolution in commerce that we need to prepare for now, to ensure it drives both business growth and social development. Ant has many deep and long-term partnerships in Malaysia and the region, and with the unveiling of the Ant International Global Development Centre in Kuala Lumpur, we stand ready to support the AI Nation 2030 vision and digitalisation of Malaysia."

Peng Yang, CEO of Ant International said, "Ant International's development evolves around the '6T' sustainable development strategy: facilitating global travel, empowering global trade, promoting robust growth, driving innovation through technology, nurturing digital talent, and building a trustworthy digital ecosystem. This aligns perfectly with Malaysia's national agenda of promoting digital transformation and stimulating the vitality of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. We are committed to long-term investments into growing world-calibre innovators as well as AI commerce solutions from Malaysia. "

Developing Next-Gen Innovators, Building from Malaysia

The GDC represents another milestone in Ant International's journey in Malaysia. It reflects the company's belief that world-class innovation can be developed in Malaysia for global markets, by creating high-value employment opportunities, nurturing local talent and collaborating with public and private sector partners.

Ant International has created around 1,500 fintech roles in Malaysia, with more than 50 percent serving in technology roles, contributing to Ant International's global businesses in AI, payments, SME digitalisation and financial technology.

Today, around half of its tech team are recent graduates, from across more than 30 universities in Malaysia, as the company collaborates with local partners like the Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), to develop the next generation of innovators.

Ant International will also deepen its collaboration with the Malaysian government and local universities, including with the Ministry of Higher Education to explore strategic partnerships, to co-develop more FinAI talents through hackathons, trainings, and curated curricula that strengthen educational pathways and power Malaysia's digital economy development and growth.

Deepening Partnerships to Drive Malaysia's Digital Economy and AI Developments

The GDC builds on Ant International's longstanding partnerships with leading Malaysian organisations that have helped advance digital transformation, financial inclusion and cross-border connectivity.

Together with CIMB and TNG Digital, Ant International has supported the development of Touch 'n Go eWallet since 2017, which today serves over 26 million consumers and businesses and underpinning Malaysia's vibrant digital ecosystem. Through Ant International’s AI suite, including its GenAI Cockpit and AI travel agent, TNG Digital makes AI-powered everyday services accessible to its users.

Through Alipay+, Ant International's unified wallet gateway, and its partnership with PayNet, Malaysia's national payment network, international travellers can use their home e-wallets and bank apps to pay seamlessly at millions of merchants across Malaysia. As Malaysia celebrates Visit Malaysia 2026, the partnership is delivering tangible economic impact: in the first half of 2026, more than 600,000 merchants, primarily SMEs, received payment from an Alipay+ partner — up more than 70% year-on-year. Total traveller spending via DuitNow rose more than 60%, with Alipay+ being the largest contributor to inbound QR transactions in Malaysia. In the next step of the partnership, Malaysian payment apps supported by PayNet will be able to making payments at over 150 million merchants in more than 220 markets connected to Alipay+.

Ant International's merchant solutions — Antom and 2C2P — are helping Malaysian businesses reach global customers and enabling Malaysian consumers connect to international brands, growing its digital merchant base by nearly 60% and processing more than 50% more transactions year-on-year.

The company now supports 300+ payment methods in over 220 markets, including all card schemes, 50 mobile payment partners and more than 10 national QR systems

Looking ahead, Ant International and CIMB are exploring next-generation financial infrastructure together, including tokenised deposits and innovative treasury solutions designed to enhance cross-border payment efficiency and liquidity management — building toward Malaysia's ambition to become a leading global payments and treasury hub.

Powering Malaysian SME Digitalisation and Global Growth Opportunities

The GDC opening comes alongside a growing suite of solutions Ant International is deploying to support Malaysian businesses.

In January 2026, in partnership with TNG Digital, Ant International launched EPOS360 in Malaysia — an AI-as-a-Service platform that gives SMEs access to digital POS management, payments, banking, credit financing and growth tools in one place. EPOS360 now serves over 14,000 SMEs across Malaysia.

WorldFirst, Ant International's global accounts service provider, obtained in-principle approval from Bank Negara Malaysia to operate under a Class A Money Services Business in 2025, enabling it to offer cross-border financial services — including global collections, payments, currency exchange and fund management — to Malaysian businesses expanding internationally. A local operations team is being established, with a full launch expected soon.

Through Bettr, Ant International aims to extend more inclusive financial services to underserved groups like gig workers and micro-enterprise owners. In 2026, Bettr partnered with Muslim Pro to provide Shariah-compliant financial enablement and flexibility for Malaysian Muslims with robust privacy protection, and its structure has been endorsed by Masryef Advisory Sdn. Bhd. and SEDANIA As-Salam Capital to ensure full alignment with Islamic financial principles.

For enterprise partners, Ant International's AI capabilities are already delivering results: by leveraging its open-sourced AI FX model, AirAsia reduced foreign exchange-related costs by 40%.

"Malaysia has been an important part of our journey, and we believe its role will continue to grow. Together with our partners, we are building technologies, capabilities and opportunities from Malaysia and beyond, towards a more intelligent, connected and inclusive ecosystem," added Yang.

The launch was also attended by YB Senator Dato' Seri DiRaja Dr. Zambry bin Abd Kadir, Minister of Higher Education.

About Ant International

Ant International is a leading global digital payment, digitisation and financial technology provider. Through collaboration across the private and public sectors, our unified techfin platform supports financial institutions and merchants of all sizes to achieve inclusive growth through a comprehensive range of cutting-edge digital payment and financial services solutions. To learn more, please visit https://www.ant-intl.com/

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