This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on June 30, 2016.

KUALA LUMPUR: GHL Systems Bhd, which expects to record better earnings this year, is eyeing a slice of the cake from the financial technology (fintech) segment.

“We are interested in fintech, and we are working with many fintech companies [currently],” said GHL group chief executive officer Kanagaraj Lorenz, without revealing the names of the companies.

“We are not ignoring it (fintech) at all. We need to be part of the change [as] the change will occur. If we are part of it, then we will benefit from it,” he told the media after the company’s annual general meeting yesterday.

Lorenz hoped there will be more relaxation of rules on the electronic wallet (e-wallet), especially for those operating with a small wallet of about RM10 million.

“The relaxation of rules will attract more players to come in and then produce specialised wallet applications for phone and mobile,” he said, noting that the Monetary Authority of Singapore does not regulate wallets that are under S$30 million (RM89.36 million).

Financially, Lorenz expects growth in revenue and net profit to continue in the current financial year ending Dec 31, 2016, with transaction payment acquisition (TPA) in Malaysia and the Philippines being the main earnings driver.

According to him, the transaction value and gross margin of the TPA segment are expected to grow at a double-digit pace this year.

For the e-payment segment, GHL registered a 20.1% growth in transaction value and 23.3% in gross margin. Meanwhile, the card payment segment achieved a 6% increase in transaction value and 39.9% in gross margin.

The lower growth in transaction value for card payment last year was due to the Philippines’ nationwide credit card security feature enhancement.

“We expect that [the] Philippines’ share of revenue will increase as we start to commence our TPA business [there],” Lorenz said, adding that growth would be significant.

Overall, the group is eyeing a 30% to 40% growth for its TPA segment, driven by the resilience of the e-payment segment.

Another earnings driver, he said, is the web payment service dubbed eGHL, of which the group intends to double its market share in two years’ time.

eGHL is the Internet payment arm of GHL, offering secure Internet payment solutions to online businesses in Southeast Asia, with a 20% market share in the domestic market.

“I see a very promising opportunity and we are able to take a significant market share. We are a relatively new comer, but we are trying to [gain] a rightful share in the market,” he added.

Besides Malaysia and the Philippines, Lorenz said, the group also has plans to venture into the Internet payment market in Singapore and Hong Kong by year end.

“We are talking with several parties and we will set up a subsidiary there to conduct the business,” he said.

For the first quarter ended March 31, 2016, GHL posted a 30% jump in net profit to RM4.33 million, from RM3.34 million a year ago, underpinned by higher revenue and a sales product mix that resulted in higher margins.