KUALA LUMPUR (Sept 3): Twenty-eight years ago, on Merdeka Day in 1994, a new Malaysian bank — Allied Bank — was born, and subsequently renamed PhileoAllied Bank. The banking industry in Malaysia was far more vibrant and dynamic in those days. There were 36 commercial banks, 39 finance companies and 12 merchant banks in operation. Not only were they popular with individuals, but they were soon installed at coffee shops and minimarkets. Read more about the bank’s interesting journey as one of the first, if not THE FIRST, digital banks in the world, in the Tong’s Portfolio column in the Sept 5 issue of The Edge Malaysia weekly.
