A Brief History Of Malaysia’s Currency: From Gold Coins To Ringgit
Malaysian currency went through five changes, including special banknotes that were introduced by the British during the Malayan Emergency.
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Before Malaysia became a unified nation, the region was made up of several states and territories, each with its own currency system.
These currencies were largely influenced by British colonial rule and trade with neighbouring countries.
Pre-independence era
In the early 19th century, Malaysia’s Malay states used various forms of currency, including gold and tin coins, and foreign currencies. The British started to take control of various parts that would become Malaysia, and their influence spread across trade, governance, and currency systems.
Introduced by the British in 1855 and used until 1939, the Straits Dollar became the first unified currency for the region. This was used across the Straits Settlements, including Penang, Malacca, and Singapore. The Straits Dollar was pegged to the British Pound, and the coins used included silver and copper in various denominations.
Following this, the Malayan Dollar replaced the Straits Dollar in 1939 and was introduced by the British colonial government. It was pegged to the British Pound at a rate of 1 Malayan Dollar equals to 1 British Pound. The Malayan Dollar circulated in the Malay Peninsula, Singapore, and British Borneo until 1939.
Post-war and formation of Malaysia
After World War II, there were significant changes to the currency systems in Malaysia.
The Malaya and British Borneo Dollar (also known as the Malaya Borneo Dollar) was introduced to replace the Malayan Dollar between 1946 and 1963. This currency was used in the Federation of Malaya, Singapore, and British Borneo (Sabah and Sarawak). The Malaya Borneo Dollar was also pegged to the British Pound.
In between those years, during the Malayan Emergency (1948-1960), which was a period of conflict between the British and communist insurgents, the British introduced special banknotes to prevent counterfeiting and to undermine communist activities.
The birth of the Malaysian Ringgit
In 1963, the Federation of Malaya merged with Singapore, Sarawak, and Sabah to form the Federation of Malaysia and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) began issuing currency notes in June 1967.
Following the gazette of the Malaysian Currency (Ringgit) Act 1975, the name of the unit of currency in Malaysia was legally changed to “ringgit” and “sen”, replacing “Malaysian Dollars” and “cents”.
The term “Ringgit”, meaning “jagged” in Malay, originally referred to the serrated edges of Spanish dollars used in Southeast Asia in the 18th and 19th centuries. This name was adopted to symbolise a new, unified Malaysia.
A cashless Malaysia and the future of transactions
After all the evolutions of the Ringgit over centuries, most of us rarely even hold paper money and coins in our hands these days, after the digitisation of money has paved way for a cashless society.
Gone are the days where you would have to dig through your purses and wallets to find cash or to pay for things. All your money can be used through your personal devices such as smartphones and smart watches.
Credit cards may be the last form of physical payment methods but even they can be stored in your phones now thanks to tech companies like Samsung and Google.
Alliance Bank recently announced a partnership with both Samsung and Google to provide their credit card holders greater convenience in mobile payments by allowing them to add their Alliance Bank Visa credit cards to their Samsung Pay or Google Pay wallets and make contactless payments at millions of merchants from more than 100 countries worldwide.
Extra layer of security
Powered by Near Field Communications (NFC) technology, Samsung Pay and Google Pay allows Alliance Bank cardholders to make secure, contactless payments with Android mobile or wearable devices.
Meanwhile, the Alliance Bank Visa Platinum Visual Credit Card (VCC), which incorporates the Dynamic Card Number (DCN) technology, enables users to generate unique, temporary card numbers for single-use or subscription-based payments, adding another layer of security.
“With Samsung Pay and Google Pay, integrated across all our Visa credit card products, including the Visa Platinum VCC with its unique card number generation, customers can now enjoy the same level of high security and flexibility for in-store payments as they do for online transactions,” said Kellee Kam, Group Chief Executive Officer of Alliance Bank.
Speaking about the collaboration between Alliance Bank and Samsung Pay, Samsung Malaysia Electronics president Charles Kim added, “Samsung seeks to eliminate the trade-off between convenience and security, creating an ecosystem where intuitive mobile experiences coexist with cutting-edge safeguards”.
Serene Gay, Group Country Manager for Regional Southeast Asia and Head of Global Acquirers and Clients for Asia Pacific at Visa commented, “Today, contactless payments represent over nine in ten Visa face-to-face transactions in the country, and this clearly signifies that Malaysian cardholders embrace this mode of payment that is seamless, secure, and convenient”.
Win Samsung devices and free ice-cream
From 9 January to 28 February, Alliance Bank cardholders who add their card to Samsung Wallet will receive an RM5 e-voucher at selected merchants.
Additionally, the top 15 Alliance Bank card spenders using Samsung Pay during this period will each win Samsung devices including a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 (256GB), Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 (256GB), Samsung Galaxy Watch 7 (40mm), and many more.
Apart from that, Alliance Bank Visa credit card users will also enjoy an exclusive buy-one-free-one ice cream scoop when they pay using Samsung Pay or Google Pay at Inside Scoop stores (valid until March).
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