Bursa names Abdul Wahid Omar as new chairman, confirms The Edge report

Friday 19 Apr 2024

KUALA LUMPUR (April 17): Bursa Malaysia announced today that Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar will be its new non-executive chairman, following the retirement of Datuk Shireen Ann Zaharah Muhiudeen.

The announcement, which confirms a report by The Edge last night, said Wahid's appointment is by the Minister of Finance, as stipulated under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007, and will take effect on May 1.

Shireen will be stepping down from her role on April 30, Bursa said in a statement. She was appointed to the post on March 1, 2019, replacing Tan Sri Amirsham A Aziz, who held the position for nearly four years from 2015.

Abdul Wahid, who previously chaired Malaysia's largest fund management company Permodalan Nasional Bhd from August 2016 to June 2018, has extensive corporate experience leading major organisations in the areas of infrastructure development, telecommunications, financial services and investment management. Among them were Malayan Banking Bhd, Telekom Malaysia and UEM Group.

He was also formerly a Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of economic planning, a post he held from June 2013 to June 2016.

The Edge reported last night, citing sources, that Abdul Wahid, currently the chairman of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, was tipped to be Bursa's new chairman.

It also reported that Shireen Ann had been asked to vacate her post over governance issues. The Securities Commission Malaysia, it wrote, confirmed that Finance Minister Tengku Datuk Seri Zafrul Abdul Aziz had decided to revoke Shireen's appointment after consulting with the commission.

In Bursa's statement today, Abdul Wahid said he was honoured to be appointed as Bursa’s chairman.

"Having had the privilege of serving as its Independent Director for seven years (2004-2011) including during its IPO in 2005, Bursa Malaysia is indeed very close to my heart.

“I would like to take this opportunity to thank YB (Yang Berhormat) Minister of Finance and YAB (Yang Amat Berhormat) Prime Minister for their trust and confidence in me.

"Thank you too to my predecessor Datuk Shireen for her leadership of the board since March 2019. I look forward to working closely with fellow board members, the management team and other stakeholders in guiding Bursa Malaysia as a diverse, innovative and sustainable exchange holding company towards realising its vision to be ASEAN’s leading, responsible and globally-connected marketplace,” he said.

Shireen also welcomed her successor, adding she is confident that Bursa would flourish under his leadership.

She is retiring together with public interest director and independent non-executive director Datin Mariam Prudence Yusof, Bursa's statement read.

Bursa also appointed Datuk Anad Krishnan Muthusamy, the managing partner of law firm Anad & Noraini, as its new public interest director and independent non-executive director. His appointment will take effect on April 23.

Bursa’s shares closed 0.51% or three sen higher at RM5.88 today, giving it a market capitalisation of RM4.76 billion. It saw some 1.39 million shares traded.