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Khazanah looking to "crowd-in" investors - Amirul

KUALA LUMPUR: Khazanah Nasional Bhd is looking to have a crowding-in effect on private investors rather than crowding them out.

Crowding in occurs when higher government spending leads to an increase in private sector investment.

Its managing director Datuk Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir said government owned entities are typically criticised for crowding out private players.

"We believe that we also have a responsibility to "crowd in" private players and other stakeholders."

"In everything we do, we recognise that we are part of a broader ecosystem, and weare connected with others just as they are connected to us."

"We must work with private companies, the government, regulators, fund managers, foundations, non-government organisations, academia and much more," he said in his welcome remarks at the Khazanah Megatrends Forum 2024 here today.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim officiated the event.

He said a clear example of Khazanah's role to crowd in private players is the National Fund of Funds (NFOF) it embarked on, following the merger of Penjana Kapital and Malaysia Venture Capital Management (MavCap).

"Rather than us being individual limited partners trying to support the development of Malaysia's venture capital ecosystem, we believe it makes more sense to attempt a coordinated approach, leveraging on the collective expertise of all our entities."

"Even for semiconductors, where there is a session today, history has taught us that no one country emerged as a semiconductor powerhouse on their own – they required courageous entrepreneurs, savvy policymakers, forward-looking universities, and innovative small and medium enterprises that help form the ecosystem," he added.

Amirul said Khazanah is shaped by its  overall strategic goal of advancing Malaysia.

To execute the strategy, he said there is a need to provide value creation in companies that Khazanah have large shareholdings, invest strategically in solving issues that Malaysia faces via its impact fund or "Dana Impak", or produce strong risk-adjusted returns from its global investment operations, and deliver societal value to Malaysians.

"And actually, in my experience at Khazanah and, indeed, over my career, I have found that the most fulfilling, impactful and imaginative projects are those which are cross-collaborative across multiple teams."

"As many of you will know, we are tasked to rejuvenate the Bangunan Sultan Abdul Samad and Carcosa Seri Negaraheritage buildings. Our objective is to make these buildings to be true community spaces, blending the past with thepresent, and the future. "In doing this, we are working with a whole host of stakeholders – the Mayor's office, Think City, architects, community activists, heritage societies, and more– as part of the Kuala Lumpur Creative and Cultural District," he said. -end-

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