Could you provide a brief journey of how you arrived where you are today?
I have been a fund manager for the last 20 years. My fund management experience led to my involvement in investment banking. I started out as a credit and marketing officer with Malaysian French Bank in 1984, before joining Malaysian Industrial Development Finance (MIDF) the following year as a project officer.
In 1988, I joined MIDF Corporate Consultancy Services as a manager of public issues and marketing.
From 1989 to 1992, I was a senior manager of investment and corporate planning at Bapema Corporation. I was also the assistant general manager of business development for Island & Peninsular, from January to May 1993.
After that, from June 1993 to March 1994, I was the executive director of Kimara Equities, which was involved in stockbroking.
From April to October 1994, I was a corporate institutional dealer at PB Securities. In November 1994, I set up JMF Asset Management, assuming the role of managing director.
Later, I participated in a joint venture with Johor Corporation and the Malay Officers Cooperative Credit And Investment Society (MOCCIS), as well as Banque Internationale A Luxembourg (Asia) as my shareholder in JMF.
Eventually, I invited AmanahRaya to become my shareholder, before moving on to my current position. On the 20th August 2008, I was appointed as CEO of Asian Finance Bank (AFB), becoming the first Malaysian to helm a foreign Islamic bank in Malaysia.
What does your role involve?
As CEO of AFB, my objective is to make sure that the bank is visible, as we just started last year. My job is to ensure that we are able to develop the bank in the areas of investment banking, especially Islamic investment banking, where our niche market is to assist government-owned companies, government-linked companies and Malaysian corporations that intend to venture into the GCC.
We provide corporate advisory, funding as well as networking for Malaysian companies to take advantage of the robust growth in the GCC and the Middle East.
What is your greatest achievement to date?
The greatest achievement to date is being given the opportunity to be the first Malaysian to lead a foreign Islamic investment bank.
Which of your products/services deliver the best results?
In the area of fund management, I have been fortunate that the fund management practices and the skills that I have, have displayed the returns on investment for my clients and because of that benchmark, moving forward into AFB, this enables us to design Islamic investment products to be able to meet the investment objective of clients.
What are the strengths of your business?
The strengths of my business have always been the support of my family, my religious faith and the support of my friends.
What are the factors contributing to the success of your company?
I am very fortunate to have three existing shareholders: Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB), which has an asset size of US$4 billion; RUSD Investment Bank of Saudi Arabia and Global Investment House (GIH) of Kuwait. RUSD and QIB have the necessary expertise and experience in investment banking.
GIH is also very notable in the GCC for its fund management practices and fund management achievements. Therefore, I am able to leverage on my existing shareholders to ensure that AFB can also leverage on the availability of expertise and resources. That could be in terms of human capital and/or funding.
What are the obstacles faced in running your business today?
The obstacle that I face currently is to be able to get the skills set, especially on human capital development particularly in terms of commitment and expertise in driving the bank forward. This is because currently there is a shortage of human resource, particularly in Islamic finance.
Where do you see the Islamic finance industry in, say, the next five years?
I believe after the financial meltdown, Islamic finance will be the best alternative for financial institutions. Conventional banks have not done well because of over-speculation and over-hedging, the credit default swap and the so-called fashionable investment instruments that have no fundamentals for investment, which has resulted in the meltdown.
Name one thing you would like to see change in the world of Islamic finance?
In the world of Islamic finance, the one thing that I would like to see change is the acceptance of Islamic funding as an efficient alternative to the current financial architecture.