Corporate News
Petronas makes new gas discovery at Balingian province
Petronas subsidiary Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd has made a gas discovery at the Hadrah-1 wildcat exploration well of
Block SK411, located in the shallow waters of Balingian province about 170km northwest off the coast of Sarawak.
In a statement, Petronas said the Hadrah-1 well was successfully drilled to a total depth of 1,850m in November 2021 and encountered gas within an approximately 200m thick sequence of high-quality sandstone and carbonate reservoirs.
'Evergrande return our money!' Investors protest at office of Chinese developer
Investors in financial products issued by China Evergrande Group protested outside the cash-strapped company's offices in Guangzhou on Tuesday, with many worried that their returns would be sacrificed to keep real estate projects afloat.
On Friday, Evergrande announced a dial-back of plans to repay investors in its wealth management products, announcing that each could expect 8,000 yuan ($1,256) per month in principal payment for three months starting in January, irrespective of when their investment matures.
Once China's top selling developer but now reeling under more than $300 billion in liabilities, Evergrande had previously agreed to repay 10% by the end of the month when the product matured, without specifying an amount.
Banking
Abdul Farid Alias to step down as Maybank group president and CEO upon contract expiry
Maybank has announced that Datuk Sri Abdul Farid Alias will not be seeking a renewal of his contract as group president and CEO, which is set to expire on Aug 1, 2022.
In a statement, the group said Farid, who has held the position of group CEO since Aug 2, 2013, has informed the board of directors he would like to pursue his own interests following the conclusion of his third term as group CEO.
Zamzamzairani added that Farid will continue to oversee the management and operations of Maybank until a successor assumes the position.
HSBC Malaysia offers hybrid work model
Many of our people felt just as, if not more, productive at home as in the office throughout the pandemic.
The initiative is in line with HSBC Malaysia's move to its new headquarters in Menara IQ, Tun Razak Exchange (TRX) and its commitment to the Future of Work model.
The hybrid work model is part of a global initiative to improve wellbeing, provide more flexibility and also to reduce the global office footprint by more than 3.6 million sq ft, or around 20% by the end of 2021.
Automotive
Proton appoints Roslan Abdullah as deputy CEO
Proton Holdings Bhd (Proton) has appointed Roslan Abdullah as its deputy chief executive officer (CEO), effective Jan 1, 2022.
Roslan was previously Proton's vice-president for Sales and Marketing and Proton Edar Sdn Bhd (PESB) CEO, roles he held since June 1, 2020.
He holds a finance and accountancy degree from the University of Brighton, United Kingdom and has more than three decades of experience in the automotive sector, Proton said in a statement today.
Malaysian
A quantum leap for M-REITs
Moreover, as owners and professional managers of many of the most iconic and landmark assets in Malaysia, M-REITs have also shouldered the burden of providing more than RM1bil and still counting, in rent relief and various initiatives to assist thousands of tenants, supporting many local businesses and SMEs, and allowing many hardworking Malaysians to keep their jobs in the most difficult of times over the past two years.
Meanwhile, other developing countries such as India, the Philippines and China have joined the race with their first REIT listings in 2019, 2020 and 2021 respectively, with China floating nine REITs in their first year alone, intensifying competition for international investors' funds to a whole new level.
MRMA also advocates for policies and initiatives that would potentially bring substantial positives for the economy, such as tax flow-through for Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) owned by M-REITs and the exemption of Withholding Tax for M-REIT individual unitholders, both of which are in line with the established best practices of regional peers such as Singapore.
Cryptocurrency
Bitcoin slumps to lowest since September
Bitcoin on Friday slumped as much as 5% to its lowest since late September, tumbling under $41,000 amid a broader sell-off for cryptocurrencies.
Bitcoin was last down 3.7% after touching $40,938, its lowest since Sept. 29.
The world's biggest cryptocurrency has lost over 40% since hitting a record high of $69,000 in November and the volatility that has plagued it since its birth 13 years ago remains stubbornly present.