Super apps are revolutionising the way we live and work in Malaysia. These all-in-one mobile apps provide a wide range of services from online shopping, food delivery, and transportation, to payment services and more. These top 6 Super Apps in Malaysia are making it easier than ever to streamline our daily lives and get ahead. They have become a necessity for convenience and efficiency.
The Covid-19 pandemic has brought the rise of super apps in Southeast Asia over the past few years. Malaysia is one of the emerging markets for technology and digital startups, with many players competing for a share of the rapidly growing mobile economy.
According to Seasia, Ipsos, a market research company, conducted a study of 3500 digital service users in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines in January 2022. All of the respondents were at least 18 years old and older.
51 per cent of Southeast Asians reported doing more online shopping, and 1 in 2 stated they used digital wallets or other cashless methods to make their payments. In a recent Ipsos survey, 43 per cent of Southeast Asian consumers of digital services used ride-hailing services, while 82 per cent ordered meal delivery.
What is a super app? And what is the list of super apps in Malaysia? Let’s look at the peak of super apps below.
What is a Super App?
A super app is a mobile application that offers numerous services through a single interface that appears unconnected. A super app tries to give users access to several services in a single area rather than having separate apps for various services, according to MakeUseOf.
For example, users of super apps can chat, shop, order rides, apply for a bank loan, and complete several other things. Super applications are convenient and save users from having to save individual apps.
One such example of a hyper app is WeChat, which is used by 1.2 billion users, primarily Chinese. Messages, payments, e-commerce, and many other things are all seamlessly integrated.
Many users depend on it because of its all-inclusive nature. It is said that Meta (previously Facebook), which owns Facebook, Messenger, Whatsapp, and other services, took inspiration from WeChat.
Super apps have been around longer than you would imagine. The term “super app” was first coined by the founder of Blackberry, Mike Lazaridis.
An environment of apps that users might utilise as part of their lives thanks to the smooth, integrated, and efficient experience was its initial definition. This definition, which accurately captures the essence of the term “super app”, is still applicable today.
In a nutshell, a super app is a single app that contains several other apps. These smaller apps reside under the super app but are not necessarily related to one another.
List of Super Apps in Malaysia
1. Grab
MyTeksi, which was first launched as a cab e-hailing app, has been cleverly renamed as Grab, which is far more brandable and matches its mega app ambitions.
Considering that you can essentially "grab" everything with the app, from rides, food, and groceries to home services, Grab is without a doubt the most well-known and comprehensive super app in this area.
Grab intends to go public on NASDAQ in collaboration with Altimeter Growth Corp. after a proposed merger agreement with Gojek was scrapped. Grab will then continue to compete with Gojek and Sea Limited for the super app throne in Southeast Asia.
2. Shopee
Shopee, which began as a mobile-only online shopping app, has been expanding at an exponential rate and has supplanted Lazada as the region's top e-commerce player. NYSE-listed Sea Limited, which also owns Garena (gaming) and SeaMoney, is the company behind Shopee financial services.
Shopee is likely Grab's most formidable super app rival in Malaysia now that it has entered the food delivery market in 2021.
3. Lazada
In Southeast Asia, Shopee vs. Lazada is comparable to Tencent vs. Alibaba. Despite being the leaders in this region's e-commerce, both businesses are up against more tough rivals in the race to become Southeast Asia's top super app.
Lazada has not yet provided meal delivery like Shopee, although ComfortDelGro has begun ride-hailing services in Singapore. Let's examine the possibility of replicating or extending the services to Malaysia and other nations.
4. AirAsia
The top no-frills airline in Southeast Asia is redefining itself to become "The Asean Super App," a process that has been accelerated by the pandemic. AirAsia started offering e-hailing services in Malaysia immediately after purchasing DeliverEat, a company that delivers food in Malaysia, and Gojek operations in Thailand.
However, it is still unclear whether the AirAsia super app will be able to compete with its major regional rivals' huge finances and technology DNA.
5. Touch ‘n Go
Touch 'n Go (TNG), which began as a prepaid card for tolls, has developed into a popular e-wallet used by Malaysians to pay for goods and services, as well as tolls and parking, of course.
In terms of delivery, TNG functions more like an aggregator when working with third-party businesses like Lazada (which aspires to become a super app), DeliverEat (which AirAsia recently purchased), etc.
6. Boost
When it comes to its aggregator strategy with outside partners, Boost and Touch 'n Go, with which Boost competes on the e-wallet front, are pretty similar. Retail, food and beverage, grocery, services, and other businesses are represented in the marketplace of the hybrid Boost app, a website covered in a native wrapper.
Through its partners, Boost provides the same online shopping, food delivery, insurance, and investing services as TNG does. The only technologies supported by Boost that are entirely "original" in-house creations are e-wallets including bill payment and parking both street and gated parking.
Wrapping up
Malaysia is a great place for businesses to launch their apps. The list of Super Apps and wannabes in Malaysia proves that this country is on the cutting edge of mobile technology advancement.
With VirtualSpirit, your businesses can develop an app that meets the needs of their consumers and take advantage of the opportunities available in Malaysia. With the right strategy, businesses can make their app stand out from the crowd and create a long-term competitive advantage. Book a call now!
