SINGAPORE (April 15): Asia Pacific saw the largest y-o-y decline in financial technology (fintech) funding value compared to other regions in 1Q2024, falling 46% to US$1.85 billion (S$2.51 billion), according to data by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Asia Pacific saw largest y-o-y decline in fintech funding in 1Q2024 — S&P Global

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has amended the Payment Services Act (PSA) and its subsidiary legislation taking effect in stages from April 4.

Singapore's central bank expands scope of regulated payment services, to cover digital payment token services

The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) issued a set of interim measures directions (IMDs) to Foodpanda operator Delivery Hero and Grab Holdings on Feb 2, in relation to Grab’s possible acquisition of the whole or part of its rival's business in Southeast Asia, including Singapore.

Set of interim measures directions issued over Grab's possible acquisition of Delivery Hero’s business in Singapore

SINGAPORE (March 4): Singapore's former minister S Iswaran has been granted permission by the court to stay longer in Australia than originally indicated after he fell ill there, according to the Singapore's Attorney General Chambers (AGC).

Iswaran allowed to extend stay in Australia after falling sick

Great Eastern Holdings, a member of the OCBC group, reported earnings of S$774.6 million (RM2.75 billion) for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2023, up 27% year-on-year.

Great Eastern reports annual earnings of S$774.6m, up 27%

Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has announced a S$1.9 billion (RM6.74 billion) enhancement to the assurance package to help Singaporeans cope with the pressure of higher living costs.

Assurance package enhancements worth S$1.9b announced to help Singaporeans cope with higher living costs

Fraser & Neave (F&N) reported earnings of S$43.8 million (RM155.06 million) for the first quarter ended Dec 31, 2023 (1QFY2024), up 52.9% year-on-year.

Earnings per share stood at three cents, compared with two cents for 1QFY2023.

F&N posts 1Q earnings of S$43.8m, up 53% year-on-year

SINGAPORE (Feb 2): The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is seeking feedback from the public regarding proposals to reduce the amount of information collected by financial institutions from their clients for selected insurance policies.

Singapore’s cenbank proposes simplifying requirements, facilitating access to cost-effective insurance products

DBS is merging equity capital markets, brokerage DBS Vickers and DBS Digital Exchange with its existing Treasury Markets business, effective from March 1.

The new group will be renamed Global Financial Markets (GFM). Andrew Ng, who is currently the head of Treasury Markets, will oversee the new enlarged group as the group head of GFM.

DBS to merge various businesses, forming Global Financial Markets group

SINGAPORE (Dec 20): Singapore Exchange (SGX)-listed SPAC (special purpose acquisition companies) firms Pegasus Asia and Novo Tellus Alpha Acquisition (NTAA) are not looking to merge with any target companies and are instead seeking to dissolve the blank-cheque companies, according to sources familiar with the matter.

Two remaining SGX-listed SPAC firms to dissolve, ending further de-SPAC hopes

Pharmaniaga Bhd’s (KL:PHARMA) has been flagged by its independent auditors again, as its current deficit and capital deficiency for the financial year ended Dec 31, 2023 (FY2023) widened from a year ago.

Messrs PricewaterhouseCoopers PLT (PwC) raised material uncertainty on the Pharmaniaga whereby its audit indicated that the group and the company incurred net losses of RM78.7 million and RM63.3 million respectively.

Pharmaniaga’s auditors raise going concern again as current deficit, capital deficiency widen

Sarawak Cable Bhd (KL:SCABLE) has to go back to the drawing board and look for a new white knight to regularise its financials.

The Practice Note 17 (PN17) company announced that the Memorandum of Agreement it entered with Serendib Capital Ltd has fallen through.

Sarawak Cable needs a new white knight as 'resuscitation exercise' falls through

Paragon Globe Bhd (KL:PGLOBE) is selling part of a parcel of freehold land it had just acquired in the district of Plentong, Johor Bahru, for RM238.32 million to improve its liquidity and financial position.

Paragon Globe to sell part of JB land it just bought for RM238 mil

In today’s edition of Evening 5: 00:00 Top 100 stocks add RM175 bil to market cap 01:54 Axiata, Sinar Mas seeking permission for merger from Indonesian govt 03:09 Record earnings push MNRB to record highs 04:26 Finance costs weigh on Sentral REIT 06:03 Go Hub Capital gets nod for ACE Market listing

EVENING 5: Malaysia’s top 100 stocks add RM175 bil to market cap

EVENING 5: Five things you need to know today

Communication Minister Fahmi Fadzil has stressed that the police investigation into the news report about the proposed casino development in Forest City, Johor, was not initiated by the government but resulted from a police report lodged by a law firm representing a company mentioned in the article.

Govt had nothing to do with police probe into Forest City casino issue — Fahmi

The Home Ministry (KDN) has inked 14 contracts with local companies valued at RM2.156 billion in conjunction with the Defence Services Asia (DSA) Exhibition & Conference 2024 and National Security (NATSEC) Asia 2024.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail said the signing of the contracts is symbolic of the ministry’s continuous efforts for agencies under its purview.

Home Ministry signs 14 contracts with local companies worth over RM2 bil

SINGAPORE (May 8): Local telco operators StarHub and M1 are said to be back to exploring a potential merger of their businesses, according to TMT Finance, citing five sources familiar with the matter.

StarHub, M1 potential merger said to be back on — TMT Finance

The Transport Ministry (MOT) does not reject any strategic partnerships with private parties to provide services for its agencies, but such partnerships needed to be done properly and required official approval.

Its minister, Anthony Loke said the ministry did not want any company to launch or announce any services for government departments suddenly without the knowledge of the ministry itself.

Loke tells BJAK to submit official application for strategic partnership with MOT, JPJ

Intel Corp expects second-quarter revenue to fall below the midpoint of previously issued projections because of a new US ban on chip exports to Huawei Technologies Co.

Intel sees revenue falling below midpoint on US Huawei ban

Former prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin has been granted a temporary release of his passport to visit a sick family member in Australia.

Sessions Court judge Azura Alwi allowed the Bersatu chief's application and ordered the travel document to be released on Wednesday and for it to be returned to the court on May 28.

Muhyiddin gets temporary release of passport to visit sick family member abroad

Shares in low-cost aviation operators Capital A Bhd (KL:CAPITALA) and AirAsia X Bhd (KL:AAX) rose in early trade on Wednesday, tracking gains at the broader market.

Capital A and AAX active, advance in post-merger trade

Shares in Sime Darby Plantation Bhd [KL: SIMEPLT] rose to their highest in two years following its announcement to develop the Tali Ayer estate in Perak into a green industrial park.

Sime Darby Plantation shares surge to two-year high following proposed solar project in Perak

Shell said on Wednesday it has agreed to sell its refinery and petrochemical assets in Singapore, Asia's main oil hub, to a joint venture between Indonesian chemicals firm Chandra Asri and Swiss miner and commodities trader Glencore.

Shell to sell Singapore refinery, petchem assets to Chandra Asri and Glencore

Homegrown information and communications technology (ICT) distributor Vstecs Bhd’s (KL: VSTECS) wholly-owned subsidiary, Vstecs Ku Sdn Bhd, has been picked as Amazon Web Services' (AWS) first distributor in Malaysia.

Amazon Web Services picks Vstecs as first distributor in Malaysia

Interim liquidators appointed by the Shah Alam High Court pursuant to a petition by Hitachi Ltd to look into the affairs of its wholly-owned Fusiotech Holdings Sdn Bhd are investigating claims of potential diversion of business by Fusionex Malaysia to third parties.

Fusionex liquidators probing alleged diversion of business to third parties

KUALA LUMPUR (May 8): Petronas Dagangan Bhd (KL:PETDAG) faces a threat from Saudi Aramco’s possible entry into Malaysia’s fuel retailing market, on top of the impending withdrawal of fuel subsidies, CGS International warned.

Petronas Dagangan faces twin share de-rating threats — CGS

Malaysia’s largest 100 companies added RM175.33 billion to their market value since the start of the year as optimism for a US Federal Reserve rate cut fuelled a broad rally in sectors ranging from technology to utilities.

RM175 bil poured into Malaysia's top 100 stocks since start of 2024, more seen coming

KUALA LUMPUR (May 8): Insurer and reinsurer MNRB Holdings Bhd’s (KL:MNRB) net profit more than doubled year-on-year (y-o-y) in the fourth quarter, thanks to lower insurance expenses and higher investment income, sending its shares surging to an all-time high.

MNRB logs record profits from lower insurance expenses, higher investment income

China has extended the visa-free policy for short-term visits to China for Malaysia and 11 other countries until the end of 2025, Xinhua reported, citing Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian.

China extends visa-free travel policy for Malaysia until end of 2025

Offshore drilling firm Velesto Energy Bhd (KL:VELESTO) is expected to report that its net profit may more than tripled in the first quarter (1Q) from a year earlier with all of its rigs utilised, Maybank Investment Bank said.

Velesto may report strong 1Q results with rigs fully occupied — Maybank IB

The US has revoked licences that allowed companies including Intel and Qualcomm to ship chips used for laptops and handsets to sanctioned Chinese telecoms equipment maker Huawei Technologies, three people familiar with the matter said.

US revokes Intel, Qualcomm's export licences to sell to China's Huawei — Reuters

MNRB Holdings Bhd (KL:MNRB) was Bursa Malaysia’s biggest gainer on Wednesday, after the insurer and reinsurer announced record quarterly and annual net profit for the financial year ended March 31, 2024 (FY2024).

MNRB makes biggest single-day jump after record FY2024 earnings

Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil said the government is prepared to engage with the US counterparts to understand the details regarding possible sanctions against Malaysian companies.

Govt prepared to engage with US counterparts over possible sanctions — Fahmi

Shares of Bursa Malaysia Bhd (KL:BURSA) extended gains to its highest since March 2021, following news that Malaysian stocks trading in its exchange hit a historical high of RM2 trillion in market capitalisation on Tuesday (May 7).

Bursa Malaysia shares hit fresh three-year high as local equities breach RM2 trillion market cap

SYDNEY/HONG KONG/SINGAPORE (May 8): Global private equity investors and asset managers are readying for billions of dollars worth of mergers and acquisitions (M&amp;As) and investments linked to data centres in the Asia Pacific, as the artificial intelligence (AI) boom fuels demand for digital infrastructure.

AI boom set to fuel data centre deals in Asia this year

A Singapore Air Force F-16 jet crashed during takeoff at a military airbase, the Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday.

Singapore Air Force F-16 fighter jet crashes after takeoff

Shares of CTOS Digital Bhd (KL:CTOS) tested their highest in nearly two months as analysts flagged a pickup in earnings ahead&nbsp;following the seasonally weaker first-quarter results.

CTOS Digital shares back away two-month high 

KUALA LUMPUR (May 8): The global semiconductor industry is expected to rebound this year, driven by demand for generative artificial intelligence (AI), with the industry’s upcycle likely to continue until 2025 or 2026, said Nomura Asset Management.

Global semiconductor industry to recover this year through 2026 on generative AI demand — Nomura

The former director and chairman of the board of SRC International Sdn Bhd has slammed Datuk Seri Najib Razak for passing the blame to the board for the misappropriation of RM3.6 billion from the company, saying the accusation was nothing more than an afterthought and without basis.

Khairani Afifi Noordin

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Khairani Afifi Noordin

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