CIMB Group names former Securities Commission head Syed Zaid Albar as new chairman
KUALA LUMPUR, June 16 — CIMB Group Holdings Bhd (CIMB) has announced the appointment of Datuk Syed Zaid Albar as its group chairman, effective July 20, 2025.
He will succeed Tan Sri Mohd Nasir Ahmad, who will retire from the board on July 19, 2025. In line with the transition, Syed Zaid will be appointed as an independent non-executive director effective June 18, 2025.
Mohd Nasir said Syed Zaid's leadership and extensive corporate experience across legal industry, financial and regulatory landscape will bring valuable perspective in guiding CIMB through its next chapter of growth and transformation.
'We are confident that his stewardship will provide strong guidance in driving the success of the group's Forward30 strategic plan,' he said In a statement today, .
CIMB Group said that Syed Zaid is a lawyer with four decades of experience across a broad range of practice areas, with a strong focus on financial services and corporate advisory.
He stepped away from legal practice in 2018 to assume the role of executive chairman of the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), a position he held until mid-2022.
'During his tenure at SC, he played a key role in strengthening the governance, regulatory oversight and the development of Malaysia's capital markets, both domestically and internationally,' it said.
Novan Amirudin, group chief executive officer of CIMB Group, said that the company looks forward to being guided by Syed Zaid as the bank executes its Forward30 strategic plan over the next six years, which anchors on the group's purpose of advancing customers and society.
'Our goal is to be the top-of-mind Asean bank, reimagining banking by embedding ourselves into our customers lives and keeping our customers at the heart of everything we do,' he added. — Bernama
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Free Malaysia Today
22 minutes ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Penang retiree loses RM800,000 in investment scam
Penang police said the man realised he had been cheated when he was unable to withdraw the 'profits' displayed on the app, totalling more than RM23 million. PETALING JAYA : A 55-year-old retiree in Perai, Penang, has lost RM827,120 to an investment scam promising quick returns. Penang police chief Hamzah Ahmad said the man had responded to an investment scheme advertised on Facebook in April, involving a company known as Freeman Ltd. He said the victim contacted a woman through WhatsApp for information on the scheme which promised returns of 7% in a short period of time. 'He was asked to download the Freeman Ltd app, register as a member and invest through the said platform. 'Between April 19 and May 26, he made 22 transfers to six bank accounts belonging to different companies,' Hamzah said in a statement today. He said the victim realised he had been cheated when he was unable to withdraw the 'profits' displayed in the app, totalling more than RM23 million, and lodged a police report. The case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code for cheating.
Free Malaysia Today
an hour ago
- Free Malaysia Today
I opposed rights issue to develop Sapura Permata tower, Shahriman tells court
Shahriman Shamsuddin wants the High Court to wind up Sapura Holdings Sdn Bhd, citing a breakdown of mutual trust and confidence with elder brother Shahril. KUALA LUMPUR : Sapura Holdings Sdn Bhd director Shahriman Shamsuddin told the High Court today he took no action to implement a rights issue aimed at funding the Sapura Permata tower because he opposed the move. Cross-examined by S Rabindra, representing elder brother Shahril, Shahriman admitted not taking any steps despite a decision by the Sapura Resources Bhd (SRB) board to proceed with the exercise on Sept 29, 2022. Shahriman was SRB's managing director at the time. Rabindra: Do you agree that the minutes of meetings (held between September 2022 and March 2023) do not reflect or capture any initiative or statement from you to ensure the rights issue was carried out? Shahriman: I was against the rights issue. Rabindra: So you were against the rights issue, therefore you didn't say anything about getting it done? Shahriman: Correct. In his petition, Shahriman said that on March 16, 2023, Shahril, acting on behalf of Sapura Holdings, had informed SRB that the company's RM100 million financial assistance offer, outlined in a term sheet dated Feb 28, 2023, had lapsed after it was not taken up. As a result, SRB was required to immediately repay a previous advance of RM40 million, made on Sept 29, 2022, along with interest and associated costs. In the petition, Shahriman accused Shahril of using the RM100 million loan to pressure SRB into carrying out the rights issue. In court, Shahriman disagreed when Rabindra suggested that Shahril was acting on behalf of the Sapura Group, and not in a personal capacity. Rabindra: Indera Permai Sdn Bhd (which advanced the funds) and the Sapura Group were entitled to protect themselves by insisting that SRB carry out what it had promised to do, or else repay their obligation in financial terms. Do you agree? Shahriman: Disagree. Rabindra: I put it to you that in the totality of the circumstances, Sapura Holdings, Indera Permai and the Sapura Group were purely, simply and plainly protecting their own position. Do you agree with this statement? Shahriman: Disagree. Shahriman is seeking to wind up Sapura Holdings, the parent entity of over 40 subsidiaries valued at RM832 million, including the publicly listed SRB. Both Shahril and Shahriman hold a 48% stake each in Sapura Holdings, with the remaining 4% owned by Rameli Musa, who is also named as a respondent. In the petition filed last September, Shahriman claims that an irreparable breakdown of mutual trust and confidence between him and Shahril necessitated the dissolution of Sapura Holdings. However, Sapura Holdings, Shahril and Rameli are opposing the petition, contending that the company was never intended to be a family business and that dissolution would be neither just nor equitable. The hearing before Justice Leong Wai Hong continues.
Free Malaysia Today
2 hours ago
- Free Malaysia Today
Work on US$1bil Trump Tower in Vietnam could start next year
Eric Trump, senior vice president of the Trump Organization, visited Vietnam last week to survey the site for the tower. (Reuters pic) HANOI : Investment in a planned Trump Tower in Vietnam is estimated at around US$1 billion and construction of the at least 60-storey skyscraper could start next year, a person familiar with the discussions told Reuters. The building, for which plans are still preliminary, would be the second major project the Trump Organization, US President Donald Trump's family business, is reviewing in Vietnam. The Southeast Asian country is currently in trade talks with Washington to avoid crippling 46% tariffs. Eric Trump, senior vice president of the Trump Organization, visited Vietnam last week to survey the site for the tower in the country's southern business hub of Ho Chi Minh City and to attend the groundbreaking for a golf resort in northern Vietnam. The approval for the golf club, according to prime minister Pham Minh Chinh, had been expedited by the authorities. The Trump Organization would operate the golf club, while its Vietnamese partner, real estate firm Kinhbac City, would focus on developing it with an estimated investment of US$1.5 billion, the source said. The division of work had not been previously reported. A similar arrangement is likely to be agreed for the Trump Tower, with the investment expected to come mostly from local partners, the source said, declining to be named because the information is not public. The Trump Organization did not reply to a request for comment. Kinhbac City, a leading industrial real estate developer in Vietnam, did not respond to a request for comment. When it announced its collaboration with the Trump Organization in October, the company said the venture 'will focus on developing 5-star hotels, championship-style golf courses, and luxurious residential estates and unparalleled amenities in Vietnam'. During his visit last week, Eric Trump toured the site where the skyscraper would be built and met local officials, the source said. That was in line with the schedule of his engagements with the city's authorities, according to a Vietnamese document seen by Reuters. The tower would be built in Thu Thiem, an area under development in central Ho Chi Minh City where a new financial centre is planned to be built, the document from the city's authorities showed. Envy of all of Asia At the groundbreaking for the golf resort, Eric Trump said the projects to be developed in Vietnam would be 'the envy of all of Asia and of the entire world', adding he would visit the country frequently to further the company's plans. Approvals for the tower project are still being sought and no final decision had been made about when construction will start, the source said, adding that the aim was to have the groundbreaking next year. The investment could be larger than US$1 billion if permits are obtained for a building with more than 60 floors, the person said. The Trump Organization operates several towers in the US and across the world, but does not own all of them. The flagship Trump Tower in the Manhattan neighbourhood of New York City was built in the 1980s. Others have since been built in Chicago, Florida and abroad, including in Turkey and the Philippines.
