10/12/2025

Editorial T: 03-7784 6688 F: 03-7785 2625 E: sunbiz@thesundaily.com Advertising T: 03-7784 8888 E: advertise@thesundaily.com

SCAN ME

WEDNESDAY | DEC 10, 2025

Bursa enhances appeal, targets high-quality listings

Ű BY JOHN GILBERT sunbiz@thesundaily.com

Further, the corporate exercise also strengthens Permodalan Nasional Bhd’s (PNB) role as a long-term steward of listed Bumiputera companies in support of Malaysia’s broader nation-building agenda. PNB group chairman Raja Tan Sri Arshad Raja Tun Uda said Orkim’s listing exemplifies the Bumiputera relay race in action and underscores the success of the GEAR-uP initiative. “By fully consolidating Orkim under PNB, we safeguard the continuity of Bumiputera ownership through every stage of growth while delivering sustainable returns to our unitholders. “This milestone reaffirms PNB’s steadfast commitment to its mandate and to driving long-term prosperity for the nation,” he said at the listing ceremony yesterday. The oil-and-gas shipping firm was KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia is taking decisive steps to strengthen its global recognition as Malaysia sharpens its ambition to position itself as an attractive investment hub in Asia. The exchange will not only focus solely on serving domestic investors but is now actively reshaping itself to attract regional and international capital flows. Finance Minister II and Acting Economy Minister Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan said a key thrust of this strategy is making Bursa Malaysia more accessible and appealing to global investors. This year alone, he said, Bursa Malaysia has seen the entry of new dual listings, a clear signal of growing international confidence in Malay sia’s capital market ecosystem. “By deepening cross-border con nectivity and enhancing market visibility, Bursa Malaysia is posi tioning itself as a serious gateway for international investors seeking ex posure to Southeast Asia. “When we connect our markets more effectively with the region and the world, we transform Bursa Malaysia into a destination of choice for global capital. “This is not just about listings – it is about building investor confidence, ensuring transparency, and creating a vibrant, competitive marketplace that reflects Malaysia’s economic potential,” Amir Hamzah told re porters after the listing of Orkim Bhd on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia yesterday. He said market reforms and investor-friendly policies remain central to the government’s broader agenda to elevate Malaysia’s standing in the global financial landscape. “Our priority is to strengthen funda mentals, encourage high-quality listings, and ensure that Malaysia remains competitive as an invest ment hub in the region.” Amir Hamzah said that through

through 2030. “While a small number of vessels are above 18 years, they remain operational as they continue to meet charter and maintenance requirements, allowing sufficient time for engineering upgrades before replacement. “Over the next few years, these older vessels will be progressively replaced either through acquisitions or new deliveries. Smaller vessels typically require a capital investment of around US$20 million (RM82 million), while larger ships, such as medium-range tankers, cost approxi mately US$46 million.” Abdul Hamid said although vessels can technically operate for up to 25 years, the company has adopted a disciplined fleet renewal strategy focused on maintaining a younger average age, guided by ongoing assessments of maintenance costs, charter requirements, replacement timing and the availability of both second-hand and newbuild vessels, with new deliveries typically taking two to three years from order to completion. - By JOHN GILBERT transparency, governance and sus tainable growth. “I encourage our mid-market enterprises to aspire toward listing, to leverage the strength of our capital markets, to scale, and to contribute to Malaysia’s economic dynamism,” Amir Hamzah said. Bursa Malaysia CEO Datuk Fad’l Mohamed said Malaysia’s capital market currently stands at about RM4.25 trillion in value, with equities being RM2 trillion or 47% of the total. He said the Malaysian equities market serves as a cornerstone to the nation’s economic growth and wealth creation. “Bursa Malaysia is not just a platform for companies to raise funds; it is also where the savings of millions of Malaysians – channelled through institutional investors – are deployed to generate long-term returns. “About RM1.6 trillion of public and pension funds are invested in local equities. In other words, our public equity market serves as a vital engine for national savings, fuelling business expansion and economic growth. “By providing a trusted and robust marketplace, Bursa Malaysia em powers companies like Orkim to access growth capital and build enterprise value, for the nation and its people,” he said at the listing cere mony. Fad’l Mohamed said Bursa Malaysia’s broader aspiration is to expand the public listed companies universe, not only in terms of size but also in terms of diversity and appeal.

o Exchange evolving into strategic platform for long-term international investors seeking growth, stability and opportunity in Asia: Amir Hamzah

Touching on Orkim’s listing, he said let the company’s story be an inspiration to Malaysia’s mid-market enterprises, “It shows what is possible when ambition meets discipline and institutional support. Through frameworks like GEAR-Up, mid-sized companies can evolve into listed entities, attract capital, and compete regionally. “This year, 2025, has been a robust one for Malaysia’s capital market. Orkim’s listing marks the 58th IPO – a clear signal that investor confidence is strong and that opportunities exist for companies ready to embrace

just about numbers. What matters just as much is the scale and quality of the companies we bring to market,” Amir Hamzah said. In line with this, Bursa Malaysia is expected to place greater emphasis on attracting larger, high-quality companies, particularly to strengthen the Main Market. “We want to see stronger anchor players and a more solid main board. This requires close engagement with Bursa in setting future targets – not only in terms of volume, but also in terms of the weight and impact of the players within the market,” Amir Hamzah said.

previously wholly owned by state owned private equity firm Ekuinas. With its debut, Orkim enters the public market with a capitalisation of RM920 million based on its enlarged issued share capital of 1 billion shares, and at an IPO price of 92 sen per share. Orkim made a flat debut on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia, opening at 92 sen, the same as its IPO price, with 5.4 million shares traded. Ekuinas gains RM276 million from the IPO proceeds and retains a 60% stake post-listing. Investor response to Orkim’s IPO was highly encouraging, with retail demand exceeding the available shares by almost 12 times, while the institutional tranche was fully subscribed. The exercise generated total proceeds of RM368 million, of which RM92 million was allocated directly to the company to support fleet expansion through the acquisition of chemical and clean petroleum product tankers, as well as to fund working capital requirements. Orkim has grown into Malaysia’s regional integration, regulatory en hancements and a clear commitment to global best practices, Bursa Malaysia is steadily evolving into a strategic platform. The exchange will not only serve local enterprises but also attract long-term international investors looking for growth, stability and opportunity in Asia. Amir Hamzah said the outlook for Malaysia’s capital market remains highly encouraging. Reflecting on the current per formance, he described this year as one of the most active and extended periods the market has experienced in recent memory. “I can confidently say that this has been a very strong year for the capital market. We expect Bursa Malaysia to outperform last year’s results,” Amir Hamzah said. He noted that last year, Bursa Malaysia recorded 25 listings. This year, the expectation is for a significant leap forward. “We hope to reach up to 60 listings this year. With that level of activity, we believe the total capital raised could approach RM30 billion. These numbers are important because they reflect strong investor interest and business confidence.” However, beyond short-term targets, Bursa Malaysia’s longer-term direction is shifting towards building depth and scale. “Moving forward, our focus is not

Amir Hamzah (second, left) during Orkim Bhd’s listing ceremony at Bursa Malaysia yesterday. – BERNAMAPIC

Orkim enters Main Market with RM920 million valuation KUALA LUMPUR: Orkim Bhd’s listing on the Main Market of Bursa Malaysia yesterday marks a significant milestone that reinforces Ekuiti Nasional Bhd’s (Ekuinas) mandate to nurture mid market Bumiputera enterprises. leading marine transportation company, operating a fleet of 18 vessels and commanding approximately 56% of the domestic market share. With Ekuinas completing its value management that has equity parti cipation, Orkim has since grown into Malaysia’s largest CPP tanker owner operator, serving regional oil majors. Orkim chairman Datuk Abdul Hamid Sheikh Mohamed said the company is involved in a high-capex, long-gestation industry.

creation journey, PNB and its unit trust funds now assume a 60% ownership stake as Orkim embarks on its next growth chapter. This transition reflects strong alignment with the government’s GEAR uP agenda for coordinated government linked investment company invest ments under the guidance of the Ministry of Finance, ensuring con tinuity in enterprise development. Since Ekuinas’ investment in 2014, Orkim has progressed through a structured value-creation journey that gained momentum, particularly when it took delivery of five new clean petroleum product (CPP) vessels and acquired one second-hand medium range tanker. Through targeted fleet modern isation and rejuvenation, enhanced governance, and commercial ex pansion, and by working together with

“For instance, when we order a new vessel, it typically takes two to three years to be built from scratch. As such, our growth strategy has been a balanced approach between acquiring new builds and purchasing second hand vessels to accelerate expansion.” He said that, as a result, the growth cycle of the marine transportation industry is generally longer than that of other service-based sectors. Abdul Hamid said all Orkim’s vessels in the fleet are fully compliant with regulatory requirements, with design specifications for future standards already incorporated at the new building stage. He said the fleet currently has an average age of 12 years, a level that the company intends to maintain