KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 14): GHL Systems Bhd shares rose 3.1% this morning after it obtained an operating licence to lend money in Malaysia and Thailand. The licence permits money lending services to both individuals and businesses.
At 10.42am, GHL added 4 sen to RM1.33 for a market capitalisation of RM996.45 million.
In a statement yesterday, GHL said its Malaysian unit GHL Payments Sdn Bhd had received the Money Lending Licence from the housing and local government ministry under the Moneylenders Act 1951, while its Thai unit GHL (Thailand) Co Ltd was issued the Nano Finance Licence by the Bank of Thailand.
The licences permit moneylending services to both individuals as well as businesses, GHL said.
"This marks a significant milestone in GHL's strategy in offering more value-added services to its small merchant base in terms of aiding the latter in their cash flow needs," it said.
"The offering of moneylending services not only creates better transactional value for merchants, but also increases GHL's relevancy to its customers," GHL added, pointing to its transaction payment acquisition merchants which stand at 87,600 points in Malaysia and Thailand.