Nine universities and colleges in Kuala Lumpur offer courses around game development and esports. This includes the Asia Pacific University of Technology & Innovation (APU), which partnered with eSports Malaysia to launch the country’s first esports academy. Local game developers Metronomik and Magnus Games are 2 key players contributing greatly to the homegrown digital gaming industry. Gaming incubator Level Up Inc, which was founded in 2017, already has 10 portfolio companies.

Malaysia has the largest Islamic fintech market, with 26 Islamic fintech service providers. Startups in this sector benefit from the Malaysian government’s initiatives to promote fintech, such as establishing a regulatory sandbox, launching a fintech academy and encouraging the adoption of Open Data APIs. In the government’s 2020 budget, a one-time credit of RM 30 (~$7) was provided to e-wallet users to spur adoption. In 2018, HelloGold, the world’s first Shariah-compliant gold trading platform, raised $4 million from 500 Startups, while Jirenxu, an FS lifecycle management platform, received $21million in Series B funding.