KUALA LUMPUR: CIMB Group Holdings Bhd, which announced its first-ever group-wide mutual separation scheme (MSS) last Friday, said it will not implement the MSS outside Malaysia and Indonesia.
“No, we have already introduced it in Malaysia and Indonesia. CIMB Thai is too small [for the MSS],” CIMB group chief executive officer Tengku Datuk Zafrul Tengku Abdul Aziz told The Edge Financial Daily yesterday.
His comments came on the sidelines of the launch of Khazanah Nasional Bhd’s first sustainable and responsible investment sukuk worth RM1 billion.
When asked about the group’s expected operational cost saving from the MSS, Zafrul declined to reveal any figures.
“It depends; it is voluntary. Depending on how many people (CIMB staff) will accept it (MSS), then we will know,” he said. However, he confirmed that the figures reported by The Edge Financial Daily yesterday were “quite accurate”.
The daily, quoting sources, said that the group is looking to cut about RM400 million a year to hit its targeted cost to income ratio of 55% this year.
It also noted that staff costs currently make up 55% of the group’s total cost, and that CIMB (fundamental: 1.05; valuation: 1.65) will look at other cost-cutting measures, such as its procurement and strategic review costs to trim its overhead.
It was previously reported that employees who are interested in the MSS are expected to submit their applications by May 29.
Successful applicants will receive packages based on rank and years of service, as well as options for extended medical cover for three years and participation in programmes.
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This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily, on May 19, 2015.