KUALA LUMPUR (Dec 12): Kumpulan Wang Persaraan, Malaysia’s second-biggest pension fund, won’t take controlling stake in foreign- owned insurers as it seeks to remain a financial investor, with even a 30% stake being too big, CEO Wan Kamaruzaman Wan Ahmad says in interview with BFM 89.9 radio station.

* NOTE: Malaysian Pension Giants Are Said to Seek Insurer Deal Talks (2)

* KWAP got approval from central bank to start talks with Prudential and Great Eastern, which is progressing “very well”; firm offer may be made to central bank by year-end

* KWAP manages RM137 billion of assets as of Sept. 30, and seeks to reach RM150 billion by 2018 and RM200 billion by 2021

* Fund’s investments in local real estate still short of target; interested in office space, such as TRX area for centrality and connectivity

** KWAP recently increased investments in Australian property, while finding it hard to justify doing the same for the U.K. on low returns

* Malaysian bond market still very attractive on expectation for only one rate hike in 2018

* KWAP sees ringgit rising to 3.80-4.00/USD, allowing a good time to get central bank approval to invest overseas

* Fund started investing in listed U.S. equities this year and this has proven to be correct

* Fund set to raise allocation for alternative investments to as high as 16%, from 14% currently

* Fund trying to have foot in tech space, with view to have bigger exposure

** KWAP remains happy with Uber stake as recent purchase by Softbank shows its investment remains “in the money”

** KWAP won’t look at cryptocurrencies as “we don’t have the kind of risk appetite”