KUALA LUMPUR: There is still an opportunity for additional development in the local alternative investment fund (AIF) market sector, as Malaysia's AIF market has seen impressive growth in the past few years.
KFintech Southeast Asia regional head Quah Meng Kee said that despite the pandemic and the challenges, verticals such as equity crowdfunding (ECF), peer-to-peer (P2P), venture capital and others have been growing in importance as well.
"The market is expanding and deepening, thanks to regulatory initiatives and an advantageous environment for efforts to grow," he told The New Straits Times.
Quah said that while the pandemic posed the biggest challenge to the market, the industry persevered and came back stronger than before with innovations, new launches, rising demands, and game-changing initiatives.
"One example of this is the ECF asset class. ECF funding dropped in 2020 due to the economic slowdown in line with the pandemic, but as the nation recovered and businesses bounced back, the sector grew steadily.
"As of the end of last year, ECF had helped raise RM420.9 million for 248 issuers, according to the Securities Commission.
"To further promote the sector's growth, the Malaysia Co-investment Fund (MyCIF) was set up under Budget 2019 to promote co-investments in micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and social enterprises alongside private investors via ECF and P2P platforms.
"With efforts like this in place, we are looking forward to what the local AIF industry has in store in its future and how it will continue to build Malaysia as a resilient fintech hub," he added.
KFintech provides managed services, focusing mainly on the unit trust industry within the capital market.
It has been operating since 2015 and today currently services 20 clients in the country.
Quah said KFintech has been instrumental over the past few years in developing the financial technology (fintech) industry in Malaysia, especially in the asset management sector.
"We have brought invaluable experience and expertise to the local market, and with this, we believe our clientele have seen improvement in various aspects of their business.
"KFintech has also brought a new and fresh sense of dynamism and flexibility to the local traditional fintech operations.
"With KFintech's innovative platforms and software, we've introduced scalability that has profoundly improved data management in the industry," he said.
Quah said the company is looking forward to conceptualising, building and managing solutions that will improve and automate technology usage in this industry.
"As the industry grows and prospers, we're excited to see how KFintech builds its presence in Malaysia.
"We are also planning to grow our clientele and further help companies integrate their business with suitable and optimised but efficient solutions," he said.