Kuala Lumpur News

CIMB Wins Innovation Award

CIMB Bank Malaysia was honoured at the Red Hat APAC Innovation Awards 2024 for their achievements in Digital Transformation and Hybrid Cloud Infrastructure.
Partnering with Red Hat, CIMB adopted OpenShift as a secure, containerized platform, enhancing operational resilience and system stability.
“The transformation journey after deploying Red Hat OpenShift was a success for us. The standardised platform has not only reduced costs and risks on an organisational level, but also paved the way for continuous innovation and business growth,” said Ros Aziah Mohd Yusoff, Group CTO, CIMB Bank Malaysia.
The award recognizes CIMB’s innovative use of Red Hat solutions to adapt to evolving customer needs and drive growth.

1337 Ventures Backs Vircle

1337 Ventures, through its 1337 Accelerator Fund I, has invested in Vircle, Malaysia’s pioneering neo-banking platform for children, aiming to enhance financial literacy across Southeast Asia.
Vircle provides parents with tools to manage their children’s pocket money via a secure app and offers a prepaid Visa card with parental controls for safe spending.
With ambitions to reach one million children in Malaysia and three million in Southeast Asia within five years, Vircle partners with schools to promote cashless platforms and recently collaborated with U Mobile to introduce cashless payments in public schools.
“Vircle is at the forefront of reshaping financial responsibility for the younger generation,” said Bikesh Lakhmichand, CEO of 1337 Ventures.
Gokula Krishnan Subramaniam, Founder and CEO of Vircle, added, “This investment enables us to scale operations and expand our reach, helping millions of children develop critical financial skills.”
Startups seeking funding can pitch at 1337 Ventures’ Pitch Tuesday via 1337.ventures/pitch-tuesday.

SumiSaujana Gains IPO Approval

SumiSaujana Group Berhad, a leading manufacturer of oil and gas (O&G) specialty chemicals, has received approval from Bursa Malaysia Securities for its ACE Market listing.
The IPO includes 310 million new shares and 90 million shares for sale, representing 27.71% of the company’s enlarged share capital.
Proceeds will fund key initiatives, including facility upgrades, a new warehouse, R&D laboratory, and capacity expansion.
Plans include exploring joint ventures and new facilities in North America and the Middle East to enhance global market presence.
“The approval from Bursa Securities represents a significant milestone for SumiSaujana,” said Encik Norazlam Bin Norbi, CEO of SumiSaujana.
“This listing will provide us with the capital needed to fuel our growth plans and further strengthen our reputation as a reliable provider of high-quality O&G specialty chemicals.”
RHB Investment Bank Berhad serves as the Principal Adviser, Sponsor, Sole Underwriter, and Placement Agent for the IPO.

Sumi Soorian Joins Robb Report

Robb Report Thailand has appointed Ms. Sumitha Soorian (“Sumi”) as Managing Director for Phuket. With over 20 years of experience in luxury hospitality and real estate, Sumi’s expertise will enhance the publication’s presence in the region.
“We are very happy to welcome Sumi to Robb Report Thailand,” said Dr. Matthew T. Nekvapil, CEO.
“We are confident that she will strengthen the leadership team while her hands-on experience with Phuket’s luxury market will help to enrich our coverage of the island.”
Sumi also serves as Chief Marketing and Commercial Officer at The Headland, Phuket, and co-owns Mrs B Bar & Table.
She is a founding member of the Phuket Hotels Association and continues to support its initiatives as Senior Advisor.
In her new role, Sumi will lead Robb Report Thailand’s strategic direction, business development, and content creation, reinforcing its position as a luxury sector leader.