TNG Digital becomes unicorn in Malaysia, mulls IPO, CIMB says

[KUALA LUMPUR] TNG Digital Sdn, Malaysia’s largest fintech company, has reached unicorn status and will weigh an initial public offering, according to shareholder CIMB Group Holdings Bhd.

“We are very confident that TNG is already qualified as a unicorn,” Gurdip Singh Sidhu, country head of Malaysia, CIMB Bank, told reporters on Tuesday (Aug 5). “The question of IPO is something we will assess, but it’s not something we are rushing into.”

The operator of one of Malaysia’s most popular e-wallet apps is the country’s newest unicorn – a startup valued at over US$1 billion – joining Carsome Group, which operates a used-car online marketplace in South-east Asia. The nation aims to identify five unicorns by 2030, Second Finance Minister Amir Hamzah Azizan said at a fintech conference in Kuala Lumpur.

TNG Digital turned profitable this year, said Sidhu, who also heads the bank’s digital businesses. The fintech firm is 45 per cent-owned by Touch ‘n Go Sdn, a CIMB Group unit.

“The business is growing very nicely, very well,” Sidhu said. BLOOMBERG