SoftPOS for Zakat Fitrah collection pilot launched

• US$3.12mil in zakat fitrah is expected to be collected this year
• If successful, programme may be expanded to other forms of zakat

The Zakat Collection Centre under the Federal Territories Islamic Religious Council (in Malay the Pusat Pungutan Zakat Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan or PPZ-MAIWP] launched its pilot programme on April 14 aimed at offering 'zakat fitrah' payment acceptance via Fasstap, a Software-based Point of Sale (SoftPOS) technology.

Under the terms of the collaboration with Fass Payment Solutions (Fasspay), payment for zakat can be made using any Android device with Near Field Communication (NFC) capabilities.

Abdul Hakim Amir Osman, CEO of PPZ-WAIWP said, “We will be among the first government-mandated zakat institutions in the world to accept card payment via Tap on Phone through Fasstap, which will enable those wanting to contribute their zakat with MyDebit ATM cards powered by Payments Network Malaysia (PayNet).”

"We are very grateful and honoured to kick start this pilot with PPZ-MAIWP. It will help us understand PPZ-MAIWP's specific requirements while expanding our Fasstap functions to ensure a more seamless, convenient and secure zakat payment experience," said Johan Zep Md Yusof, Head, Government and Public Sector Business Development of Fasspay. This is in line with our existing strategic aspiration – to support the government’s call to elevate Malaysia towards a more cashless society.”

He added that PPZ-MAIWP targets a total zakat fitrah collection of US$3.12 million (RM13.8 million) throughout Ramadan this year.

Fasstap is currently being used by Small and Medium Enterprises communities including B40 micro merchants as a cost-effective mobile payment solution.

The two organisations will deploy the pilot test at three selected locations: PPZ-MAIWP Head Office, Al-Syakirin Mosque at KLCC, and Jalan Masjid India. The locations were selected to accommodate the high traffic of zakat payers who are more tech-savvy.

This year, PPZ-MAIWP assigned 921 amils (zakat collectors) for all Federal Territories including Putrajaya and Labuan. Each amil is assigned to a public location such as mosques, office buildings, shopping malls, public transportation stations and so on to reach out to more Muslims who want to pay their zakat fitrah.

Following this pilot, PPZ-MAIWP foresees a full deployment of Fasstap, where the zakat collection would be extended to other types of zakat harta including zakat pendapatan (income), zakat emas (gold), and zakat simpanan (savings).

There are also plans for Fasspay to develop a zakat-friendly payment ecosystem where key details can be entered before generating an official PPZ-MAIWP receipt, which will be emailed directly to each zakat payer for records and tax exemption purposes.