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Kuala Lumpur, 21 April 2008 - In its quest to become the preferred Islamic bank in the region offering a full suite of Islamic financial solutions to both corporate and individuals, Kuwait Finance House (Malaysia) Berhad (KFHMB) has announced its appointment as Islamic Unit Trust distributor collectively by seven Fund Houses, to distribute Islamic funds. KFHMB's involvement in unit trust is part of the phased rollout of its retail banking expansion programme. To mark its entry into the unit trust industry, a signing ceremony with the selected seven unit trust fund houses was held in Kuala Lumpur today.
KFHMB had obtained its Institutional Unit Trust Agent (IUTA) licence since 27 August 2007 from the Federation of Malaysian Unit Trust Managers (FMUTM). Subsequently, KFHMB has undertaken the evaluation process for the selection of fund houses which met KFHMB's criteria and able to cover the different investment risk spectrum of the Bank's customer base- from low risk to high risk. The four main criteria, which had been exclusively identified for the fund houses in order to be considered by KFHMB were: 1. Consistent good performance of the fund; 2. Good investment returns; 3. Preservation of capital; and 4. Well-defined investment process and discipline.
Seven fund houses, which have obtained top scoring under KFHMB's selection criteria were chosen. The signatories from the fund houses were YBhg. Admiral (R) Tan Sri Dato' Seri Abu Bakar Abdul Jamal (Chairman of Affin Fund Management Berhad), YBhg. Datin Maznah Mahbob (CEO of the Funds Management Division of AmInvestment Bank Group), Mr Simon Chow (CEO of CMS Trust Management Berhad), Mr Steve Ong (Chief Executive Officer of ING Funds Berhad), Mr Ho Seng Yee (Executive Director/ CEO of OSK-UOB Unit Trust Management Bhd), Dr. Tan Chong Koay (Founder/ Chief Strategist of Pheim Unit Trusts Berhad) and Mr Mark Toh Chin Hian (Chief Executive Officer of Prudential Fund Management Berhad). YBhg. Dato' K Salman Younis, Managing Director of KFHMB signed on behalf of KFHMB.
These fund houses offer some 20 Islamic Unit Trust Funds, selected based on their consistent track record and performance reflected in the top quartile of the unit trust fund industry. KFHMB will continuously explore other fund management companies on the possibility of being a distributor for funds, or developing a unit trust fund which is exclusively sold via KFHMB.
Simultaneously, KFHMB launched its Priority banking today. This segment aims to tap the mass affluent market and high net-worth individuals (HNWIs) who seek consistent rate of return on their investments.
"We are pleased to collaborate with the seven selected fund houses to distribute Shariah-based unit trusts," commented Dato' Salman Younis. "The launch of KFH Priority banking and our appointment as Islamic unit trust distributor enables the Bank to successfully leverage on our ability to cross-sell products and services and to tap into a new market segment."
"To date, KFHMB has been successful in offering a diverse range of Islamic financial solutions encompassing full-scale corporate & investment banking, commercial, asset management and private equity. The fore-mentioned are all meant to deliver continuous and enhanced value to our customers, depositors and stakeholders" explains Dato' Salman.
"As the first foreign Islamic bank to establish its roots in Malaysia three years ago, KFHMB has performed well. The achievement is testament of prudent management and strength of the Bank, with strong backing from our parent company KFH-Kuwait," Dato' Salman added. "The Commercial, Retail & Consumer Banking team has formulated a plan to offer an array of Shariah-compliant asset classes of investment products and opportunities to our high net-worth customers," explained Dato' Salman, "and the team's qualified professionals will facilitate the achievement of customers' financial goals of increasing their wealth and at the same time managing their risks."
As the world's leading and award-winning Islamic bank, Dato' Salman stressed the importance of ensuring and maintaining close relationship with customers by providing exceptional service to suit their specific needs.
"The possibility for us to manifest our business objectives alongside the government's aspirations was a key factor in selecting Malaysia as a conduit for investors and economic activities between the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific," said Mr. Shaheen Al-Ghanem, Chairman of KFHMB.
"The rapid growth of Islamic banking coupled with the Malaysian Central Bank's support towards product innovation in the Islamic banking and finance industry are two key factors which have contributed to the exceptional performance of KFHMB," he affirmed. "As Chairman of KFHMB, I am very pleased with the progress the Bank has made since inception three years ago. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Government of Malaysia, especially the Ministry of Finance, the Regulators, as well as our customers and partners who have contributed to our success. Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the KFH Group for their commitment to Malaysia."
KFHMB Priority banking is available for customers who place RM300,000 in KFH General Investment Account-i (KFH GIA-i)/ investments, or customers with RM500,000 property financing facility including RM100,000 GIA-i/ investment. Customers will be offered a comprehensive range of Islamic banking products, the latest market news and research from our award winning research team and dedicated Relationship Managers to cater to all their banking and investment needs.
At present, KFHMB Priority banking is available at two branches ¿ the Kuala Lumpur main branch in Jalan Pinang and the newly opened Taman Molek branch in Johor Bahru. KFHMB expects the number to increase with a few more branches slated to open in major city centres within the next couple of years.
KFHMB had obtained its Institutional Unit Trust Agent (IUTA) licence since 27 August 2007 from the Federation of Malaysian Unit Trust Managers (FMUTM). Subsequently, KFHMB has undertaken the evaluation process for the selection of fund houses which met KFHMB's criteria and able to cover the different investment risk spectrum of the Bank's customer base- from low risk to high risk. The four main criteria, which had been exclusively identified for the fund houses in order to be considered by KFHMB were: 1. Consistent good performance of the fund; 2. Good investment returns; 3. Preservation of capital; and 4. Well-defined investment process and discipline.
Seven fund houses, which have obtained top scoring under KFHMB's selection criteria were chosen. The signatories from the fund houses were YBhg. Admiral (R) Tan Sri Dato' Seri Abu Bakar Abdul Jamal (Chairman of Affin Fund Management Berhad), YBhg. Datin Maznah Mahbob (CEO of the Funds Management Division of AmInvestment Bank Group), Mr Simon Chow (CEO of CMS Trust Management Berhad), Mr Steve Ong (Chief Executive Officer of ING Funds Berhad), Mr Ho Seng Yee (Executive Director/ CEO of OSK-UOB Unit Trust Management Bhd), Dr. Tan Chong Koay (Founder/ Chief Strategist of Pheim Unit Trusts Berhad) and Mr Mark Toh Chin Hian (Chief Executive Officer of Prudential Fund Management Berhad). YBhg. Dato' K Salman Younis, Managing Director of KFHMB signed on behalf of KFHMB.
These fund houses offer some 20 Islamic Unit Trust Funds, selected based on their consistent track record and performance reflected in the top quartile of the unit trust fund industry. KFHMB will continuously explore other fund management companies on the possibility of being a distributor for funds, or developing a unit trust fund which is exclusively sold via KFHMB.
Simultaneously, KFHMB launched its Priority banking today. This segment aims to tap the mass affluent market and high net-worth individuals (HNWIs) who seek consistent rate of return on their investments.
"We are pleased to collaborate with the seven selected fund houses to distribute Shariah-based unit trusts," commented Dato' Salman Younis. "The launch of KFH Priority banking and our appointment as Islamic unit trust distributor enables the Bank to successfully leverage on our ability to cross-sell products and services and to tap into a new market segment."
"To date, KFHMB has been successful in offering a diverse range of Islamic financial solutions encompassing full-scale corporate & investment banking, commercial, asset management and private equity. The fore-mentioned are all meant to deliver continuous and enhanced value to our customers, depositors and stakeholders" explains Dato' Salman.
"As the first foreign Islamic bank to establish its roots in Malaysia three years ago, KFHMB has performed well. The achievement is testament of prudent management and strength of the Bank, with strong backing from our parent company KFH-Kuwait," Dato' Salman added. "The Commercial, Retail & Consumer Banking team has formulated a plan to offer an array of Shariah-compliant asset classes of investment products and opportunities to our high net-worth customers," explained Dato' Salman, "and the team's qualified professionals will facilitate the achievement of customers' financial goals of increasing their wealth and at the same time managing their risks."
As the world's leading and award-winning Islamic bank, Dato' Salman stressed the importance of ensuring and maintaining close relationship with customers by providing exceptional service to suit their specific needs.
"The possibility for us to manifest our business objectives alongside the government's aspirations was a key factor in selecting Malaysia as a conduit for investors and economic activities between the Middle East and the Asia-Pacific," said Mr. Shaheen Al-Ghanem, Chairman of KFHMB.
"The rapid growth of Islamic banking coupled with the Malaysian Central Bank's support towards product innovation in the Islamic banking and finance industry are two key factors which have contributed to the exceptional performance of KFHMB," he affirmed. "As Chairman of KFHMB, I am very pleased with the progress the Bank has made since inception three years ago. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Government of Malaysia, especially the Ministry of Finance, the Regulators, as well as our customers and partners who have contributed to our success. Finally, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the KFH Group for their commitment to Malaysia."
KFHMB Priority banking is available for customers who place RM300,000 in KFH General Investment Account-i (KFH GIA-i)/ investments, or customers with RM500,000 property financing facility including RM100,000 GIA-i/ investment. Customers will be offered a comprehensive range of Islamic banking products, the latest market news and research from our award winning research team and dedicated Relationship Managers to cater to all their banking and investment needs.
At present, KFHMB Priority banking is available at two branches ¿ the Kuala Lumpur main branch in Jalan Pinang and the newly opened Taman Molek branch in Johor Bahru. KFHMB expects the number to increase with a few more branches slated to open in major city centres within the next couple of years.
