> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.rc.cleverhub.co/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Southeast Asia: PromptPay, FAST, and DuitNow

> A comparative reference to real-time payment systems across Southeast Asia (Thailand’s PromptPay, Singapore’s FAST, and Malaysia’s DuitNow) and how they connect.

Several Southeast Asian countries run their own real-time payment systems, and a number of them are being linked together for cross-border payments. This page is a comparative reference to three of the best-known (Thailand’s **PromptPay**, Singapore’s **FAST**, and Malaysia’s **DuitNow**), showing how they fit the concepts covered elsewhere in this section.

<Note>
  This page is a high-level reference, not an integration guide. For the underlying ideas, see [real-time A2A payments in depth](/platform-overview/payment-concepts/real-time-a2a).
</Note>

## The three systems at a glance

<CardGroup cols={3}>
  <Card title="PromptPay (Thailand)" icon="flag">
    Thailand’s real-time system, letting people pay to a mobile number or national ID instead of a bank account number, with heavy QR-code use.
  </Card>

  <Card title="FAST (Singapore)" icon="flag">
    Singapore’s Fast And Secure Transfers service, enabling near-instant transfers between bank accounts, complemented by the PayNow alias service.
  </Card>

  <Card title="DuitNow (Malaysia)" icon="flag">
    Malaysia’s real-time system, allowing transfers to a mobile number or ID and widely used through DuitNow QR.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Shared traits

All three follow the same pattern you have seen in Australia, the US, and (increasingly) Japan:

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Real-time and always on" icon="bolt">
    Each settles payments in seconds, around the clock.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Alias-based addressing" icon="id-card">
    Each lets customers pay to a simple identifier (a mobile number or national ID) much like PayID or UPI.
  </Card>

  <Card title="QR-friendly" icon="qrcode">
    QR codes are a common way to pay, especially at physical merchants.
  </Card>

  <Card title="Being linked across borders" icon="link">
    These systems are progressively being connected so a customer in one country can pay someone in another in real time.
  </Card>
</CardGroup>

## Cross-border linking

A notable trend in the region is connecting these national systems so payments can flow between them directly. Initiatives to link fast-payment systems across Southeast Asia (and beyond) aim to make cross-border payments as quick and cheap as domestic ones. Japan’s planned new system is being designed with this kind of regional connection in mind.

<Note>
  This is an evolving area. The details of which systems are linked, and how, change over time. Use this page to understand the direction of travel rather than as a definitive list.
</Note>

## How this connects to Hello Clever

<Tip>
  Hello Clever’s multi-currency services focus on the APAC region, so these systems form the backdrop to cross-border payments in the area. For how Hello Clever handles multiple currencies and settlement, see [multi-currency and cross-border](/platform-overview/payment-concepts/multi-currency-payins-payouts).
</Tip>


## Related topics

- [Overview](/platform-overview/payment-concepts/overview.md)
- [Get Started with Hello Clever](/getting-started/overview.md)
- [Real-time Transfers and the More Time System](/platform-overview/payment-concepts/real-time-transfers.md)