Buying an electric car in Malaysia now comes with a bank attached. Maybank Group has launched what it calls the country’s first integrated financing solution for EV and hybrid buyers, bundling a car loan with insurance, takaful cover and charging privileges.
Datuk John Chong, CEO of Maybank’s community financial services group, said the launch reflects the bank’s commitment to sustainability and to customers who are growing more environmentally conscious. He tied it to the government’s aim of lifting the EV share of the market to 38% by 2040 under the National Energy Policy 2022-2040.
It also fits Maybank’s own targets. The group has pledged to mobilize a recently revised RM80 billion in sustainable financing by 2025 and to reach a carbon-neutral position by 2030.
Chargers and rewards
Maybank Islamic, a Maybank subsidiary, has installed EV charging stations at Dataran Maybank, the Kuala Lumpur Golf & Country Club and the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in Kuala Lumpur. It plans more across the Klang Valley and other peninsular states by December 2024.
Its CEO, Datuk Mohamed Rafique Merican, said the aim is to encourage EV adoption and put more chargers within easy reach of owners. Members of its InCharge EV financing programme get rebates at Maybank Islamic stations and at other chargers through the ParkEasy app. Money collected from charging at the bank’s stations goes to social impact initiatives.
Insurance for home chargers
Etiqa, Maybank’s insurance arm, introduced Malaysia’s first insurance and takaful cover for EV home chargers in October 2022. The cover comes free with an Etiqa private car policy or certificate for newly registered battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Owners who buy a wall charger separately can take out standalone cover under an all-risk plan.
Maybank also held an EV driving event with Auto Bavaria, its first collaboration of that kind with a financial institution. Visitors saw the BMW iX40 Sport, already on sale, and the BMW i7, which debuts in Malaysia in the third quarter of 2023, and learned how charging works.
