tunai

Tunai is a term used in Indonesian and Malay to refer to money in physical form, i.e., cash. It denotes coins and banknotes that can be handed over directly in exchange for goods or services. The word is used to distinguish cash payments from non-cash methods such as credit or debit cards, electronic transfers, and mobile wallets. In everyday language, phrases like uang tunai (cash money) and pembayaran tunai (cash payment) are common, and many retailers use signs indicating payments accepted as tunai.

In regional usage, tunai is prevalent across Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, and other Malay-speaking communities. It features prominently in both informal commerce and formal financial language, including retail, banking, and accounting contexts. The distinction between tunai and non-tunai payments shapes consumer behavior, pricing, and checkout practices.

Economically, tunai transactions are often subject to regulatory considerations, including reporting thresholds and anti-money-laundering controls for large cash exchanges. The availability and use of cash can influence the structure of payment ecosystems, even as digital and card-based payments expand. The term remains firmly embedded in everyday speech and financial discourse as the standard label for cash payments in Malay-speaking regions.

Notes on terminology: tunai is commonly paired with phrases such as uang tunai or pembayaran tunai, and the opposite concept is non-tunai or cashless payments.