Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak Returns From Voluntary Leave of Absence to Resume Chairmanship of CIMB Group

Kuala Lumpur: The Boards of CIMB Group Holdings Berhad and CIMB Bank Berhad (“Boards”) announced today that Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak will resume his role and position as Chairman of CIMB Group and Director of CIMB Bank, with effect from 19 May 2016.

Dato' Sri Nazir Razak's return marks the completion of a comprehensive review conducted by the Boards, which commenced on 5 April 2016, on the banking activities relating to his personal account, reported by the Wall Street Journal on 31 March 2016. The Boards had appointed an external audit firm, Messrs. Ernst & Young and had sought independent legal advice to assist them with the review. Dato' Sri Nazir Razak has been on a voluntary leave of absence since 19 April 2016 to ensure the complete independence and integrity of the review.

The findings from the review concluded that Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak did not misuse his position as the Group Chief Executive at that time nor was there any inappropriate use of the bank’s resources. However, the detailed examinations conducted during the review identified some process shortcomings, and the Boards have instructed the management to put in place plans for immediate improvements as well as strengthened internal rules and processes to avoid reoccurrences moving forward.

Representing the Boards, Senior Independent Director and Chairman of the Audit Committee of CIMB Group, Datuk Mohd Nasir Ahmad said, “The Boards welcome Dato' Sri Nazir Razak back to serve as Chairman of CIMB Group and Director of CIMB Bank. The Boards are committed to maintaining the highest standards of corporate governance in our organisation, and this decision was taken with firm intent towards fulfilling these obligations. Apart from the findings of the review, the Boards also took into consideration the vote of confidence from shareholders for Dato’ Sri Nazir Razak’s continued chairmanship at our 2016 Annual General Meeting as well as his track record of serving the Group in various capacities since 1989, in arriving at the decision."