This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on January 17, 2020 - January 23, 2020

KUALA LUMPUR: Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) says its deputy president strategic investments Datin Paduka Kartini Abdul Manaf has retired, effective Jan 1 this year, after serving the fund management company for 36 years.

In a statement, PNB said Kartini served in various capacities throughout her stint with the fund management company.

“She was involved in diverse aspects of investment management and corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions (M&As), corporate restructuring, portfolio management, property investment as well as business development,” it said.

PNB chairman Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz said Kartini had driven the company’s major M&A exercises and was also a key figure in cultivating strong ties with PNB’s investee companies.

“On behalf of the board of directors and the PNB family, I would like to express our gratitude and sincere appreciation to Datin Paduka Kartini for her immense contribution to the group. We wish her well and look forward to continue working with her in her role as PNB’s nominee director on the boards of some of our investee companies,” she said.

With Kartini’s retirement, both the strategic investment and private markets divisions now report directly to president and group chief executive Jalil Rasheed.

In the same statement, PNB also announced the establishment of the treasury division, responsible for managing the overall capital and liquidity management of the business, including fundraising and liability management.

The new division will be led by Hafizuddin Sulaiman, affirming a report by The Edge Financial Daily in December about the ex-Khazanah Nasional Bhd director taking up the newly-created treasury head position, citing a social media post by Jalil.

“This new function was formed in line with PNB’s overall portfolio diversification strategy which includes increasing its global investment exposure. Hafizuddin brings with him extensive experience in the areas of fundraising and financial reporting from his tenure in Khazanah Nasional Bhd and Ernst & Young Kuala Lumpur,” PNB said.

Zeti added the changes will enable PNB to reinforce a more collaborative working arrangement across all levels of the organisation as it works towards strengthening PNB’s capability in delivering sustainable returns to unitholders.

“At the same time, the changes taking place will allow us to grow our talent pipeline in order to implement our strategic plan with the vision of becoming a distinctive world-class investment house,” she said.