KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 26): Malaysia will strengthen oversight of e-commerce platforms, including requiring platforms to be registered.
This comes after complaints from platform operators and brick-and-mortar traders over issues like the safety of electronic products, halal status and scams.
“Based on the series of complaints and the cabinet’s directive, the government, particularly the Communications Ministry and Finance Ministry, will begin taking action today,” government spokesman Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil said at a news conference on Wednesday.
Fahmi, who is also the communications minister, noted that some e-commerce platforms have companies registered in Malaysia, while others do not.
The proposed regulatory measures would require e-commerce platforms to comply with local standards, including those governing electrical products and halal requirements, as well as tax regulations under the Inland Revenue Board.
Fahmi, however, did not identify any e-commerce platform.
The Edge Malaysia, in the Aug 24-30 edition, reported local retailers and e-commerce players complaining of an uneven playing field with e-commerce platforms, particularly China-based Pinduoduo, which has been gaining traction in Malaysia.
Pinduoduo, which launched in Malaysia about nine months ago, offers a wide range of products, from personal and household goods to snacks, at a fraction of local prices.
Among the grievances of local traders was that Pinduoduo was unencumbered by the regulatory and tax requirements that they complied with.
Fahmi stressed that the government’s intention was to protect consumers and not to shut down e-commerce platforms.
The government will also engage with e-commerce platforms to discuss the proposed regulatory framework, he said.
Fahmi said the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) experience of discussions with social media platforms could be applied to its engagements with e-commerce platforms.
Fahmi added that the MCMC had received 1,964 complaints involving e-commerce platforms from Jan 1, 2025 to Aug 25, 2026.
Of the total, 1,147 complaints were received in 2025, and 817 were lodged between January and Aug 25 this year.
A total of 161 complaints involved electronic products, and four concerned halal status, he said.