Rakuten Trade Revamps Rewards Program Based on Changing Digital Investor Behavior

KUALA LUMPUR, 06 July 2022: Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd (Rakuten Trade) starts its fifth year in Malaysia with a revamped Rewards Eco System to better cater to the changing digital investment landscape and investor behaviour. Lifestyle rewards and brokerage rebates continue to be key pillars of the program but with significant changes to its matrix in line with results from a survey conducted among its clients last year.

Rakuten Trade Chief Executive Officer Mr Kazumasa Mise said, “Based on trends of the last few years, a robust rewards ecosystem is integral in encouraging retail participation and creating quality customer experiences for both beginner and experienced digital traders. As a result, our revamped program introduces two RT Point categories offering diverse ways to earn and redeem points and carries different expiry dates.”

Rakuten Trade’s multi award-winning ecosystem gives investors RT Points whenever they engage with the platform from account opening, cash deposit, share transfer in, referring friends and family, trading and by participating in various marketing campaign(s). In addition to being used to offset brokerage fees, RT points can be converted into lifestyle rewards such as from AirAsia BIG Loyalty, BonusLink and Boost.

Under the new Rewards Program, users can earn and redeem RT Points in two different categories. Under the first category, new users can earn up to 300 RT Points via first time deposit and share transfer while trading in the Bursa and U.S. market may earn them 1 RT Point for every RM2 brokerage fee spent. The points earned in this category can be redeemed into any lifestyle rewards and offset brokerage fees with the expiry date of 12 months.

For the second category, existing users can earn RT points via friend referral mechanics (1,000 RT Points) and by participating in ad hoc campaigns or webinars. The pointed earned can only be used to offset brokerage fees only.

According to Mr Mise, since inception, Rakuten Trade has issued a total of more than 274 million RT points since BD 1 of which more than 38% have been redeemed by 44,000 clients. "In 2021, Rakuten Trade clients earned about 52million in RT points and recorded a redemption surge of more than 250% year on year. This was due to changes in the program’s versatility that introduced more ways for investors to earn points and allowed clients to use their RT Points to offset brokerage fees.” Malaysian retail investors' interest is always changing in tandem with the constant change in the digital landscape. Supported by digital connections, the last few years has bridged the digital divide and created a new segment of younger, more digital savvy investors who are comfortable in investing both in local and foreign markets.

Based on a survey conducted last year; brokerage rebates were the primary reason for investors to debut trade and the second highest reason to continue trading. This suggests that the cost of trading remain a pivotal factor when it comes to investing. Nearly 50% of respondents said that the RT Points have somewhat met their lifestyle goals.

Mr Mise added, “By understanding what our traders expect, satisfying their needs and innovatively strengthening our platform, we maintain our first in market edge while contributing towards a more digital economy.”

For more information on Rakuten Trade’s rewards ecosystem, please visit www.rakutentrade.my.