7 October 2022
To be attributed to Dato’ Abdul Rahman Ahmad, Group Chief Executive Officer of CIMB Group
We are pleased to see the Malaysian Government’s focus on strengthening recovery momentum and economic resilience as well as implementing comprehensive reforms to benefit Keluarga Malaysia through Budget 2023. As Malaysia continues to recover post-pandemic amidst challenging global macroeconomic conditions and inflationary pressures, the responsive, responsible and reformist approach taken in Budget 2023 provides an optimal balance in helping the Rakyat and businesses alike to navigate this uncertain period.
We welcome the focus on initiatives that will benefit our youths, the B40 group and those who are self-employed or in the gig economy, as well as micro, small and medium enterprises (“MSMEs”), the backbone of our economy. This includes, for example, various tax incentives, grants, and financing opportunities, which CIMB is proud to support via programmes such as Bank Negara Malaysia’s (“BNM”) iTEKAD initiative. We believe the initiatives announced in Budget 2023 will ultimately help to promote a more broad-based and sustainable recovery.
We also laud the increase in the Amanah Saham Bumiputera (“ASB”) and Amanah Saham Bumiputera 2 (“ASB2”) investment ceiling to RM300,000, which will increase Bumiputera equity ownership and participation and, in the long term, help to secure their financial resilience.
In view of the growing prevalence of scams and fraud, CIMB welcomes the Government’s initiatives such as the establishment of a National Scam Response Centre (“NSRC”). On the Bank’s part, we are firmly on track to fully implement the enhanced security measures against scams as announced recently by Bank Negara Malaysia (“BNM”). We will continue to work closely with the authorities in order to protect consumers against fraud.
In line with the country’s sustainability agenda, we were encouraged to see the allocation for flood mitigation, highlighting the urgency of climate change adaptation. Similarly, CIMB is also pleased to support initiatives such as BNM’s Low Carbon Transition Facility (“LCTF”) in helping SMEs to adopt lower carbon practices.
As a financial institution, CIMB plays a critical role in channelling financing and capital in ways that will support a just transition towards a net zero economy and greater social equity. We will continue to support Malaysia’s ESG agenda through our sustainable finance products and services, including through Islamic finance value-based intermediation (“VBI”).
As always, CIMB is committed to collaborate and engage with stakeholders across the private and public sectors and civil society in supporting the ambitions set out in Budget 2023 for the benefit of the Rakyat. We are confident that together, we will be able to create a productive and resilient economy that will help us all to weather the challenging environment.
