PUTRAJAYA: Datuk Syed Zaid Albar has been appointed as the new Securities Commission (SC) chairman effective Nov 1.
Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said Syed Zaid would replace Tan Sri Ranjit Ajit Singh who would retire from the post on Oct 31.
“This had been agreed by Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad,” said Lim in a statement today.
Syed Zaid, he said, was chosen for the post as his expertise encompasses various sectors, such as corporate law, capital markets, sukuk and Islamic and conventional banking.
“Syed Zaid has 38 years’ worth of experience in the legal profession with extensive experience in the advocacy of the regulatory framework relating to securities law and capital markets.
“He read law at the University of Westminster in the UK and later qualified as a Barrister-at-Law from Lincoln’s Inn, London in 1979.
“He was admitted as an advocate and solicitor of the High Court of Malaya in 1980. He served in Skrine & Co and later founded his own legal firm Albar & Partners,” Lim said.
Syed Zaid was also a member of the Islamic Banking Law Review committee at Bank Negara Malaysia.
Lim also expressed his appreciation to Ranjit for his contributions in the capital market for 25 years he served in the SC, including six years as its chairman.
“During his tenure as the SC chairman, Tan Sri Ranjit helped to preserve stability in our capital markets by focusing on corporate governance, despite the challenge of poor public governance resulting from the 1MDB-related scandals.”