This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on December 21, 2018

KUALA LUMPUR: HSBC Holdings plc is selling its 49% stake in HSBC Amanah Takaful (Malaysia) Bhd, held via indirect wholly-owned unit HSBC Insurance (Asia Pacific) Holdings Ltd, as the banking group has decided to exit the takaful manufacturing business and focus on its banking operations in Malaysia.

The banking group is selling the stake to FWD Life Insurance Company (Bermuda) Ltd, a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based FWD Ltd. FWD is owned by tycoon Richard Li.

Speculation about the deal surfaced in August this year, when Reuters reported, citing people familiar with the deal, that FWD has agreed to take up the stake as part of its plan to expand its presence in Asia.

The transaction has been approved by the finance ministry, via Bank Negara Malaysia, and is expected to be completed in the first half of 2019, the banking group announced in a statement yesterday. The remaining equity stake in the joint venture takaful business is owned by JAB Capital Bhd (formerly known as Jerneh Asia Bhd) (31%) and the Employees Provident Fund (20%), according to HSBC Amanah Takaful’s website.

“We have decided to exit the takaful manufacturing business and focus on our banking operations in Malaysia. This transaction relates only to a change in ownership for the takaful joint venture. For the HSBC Group, the transaction does not have any impact on our current businesses in Malaysia, comprising HSBC Bank Malaysia Bhd and HSBC Amanah Malaysia Bhd.

“Malaysia remains a key insurance distribution market for us and we will continue to support the insurance needs of our customers through our insurance partners,” said HSBC Bank Malaysia chief executive officer Stuart Milne in the statement.

Malaysia, the bank said, is one of eight scale markets for the HSBC Group, which means it aspires to be one of the leading domestic banks in that market.

“HSBC remains highly committed to Malaysia and to retaining our position as a leading international financial institution in the country. We have a long history in the country and plan to continue serving our customers and investing in our people, network and businesses.

“HSBC Bank Malaysia’s ongoing US$250 million (RM1.04 billion) investment to construct its new Malaysian headquarters in the new financial hub of TRX City underscores our commitment to developing our business in Malaysia,” the bank stressed.