KUALA LUMPUR (March 26): Ekuiti Nasional Bhd (Ekuinas), which was formed in 2009, will be put under Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) as part of the government’s plan to consolidate the bumiputera-focused investment institutions. 

Meanwhile, Datuk Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir, who has been at the helm of Ekuinas for nearly nine years, is stepping down as CEO, sources familiar with the matter tell The Edge.

Aliff Omar Mohamad Omar, the current senior director of investment, will take over the post, said sources.

To recap, the ownership of Ekuinas was placed under Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputera (YPB) last year as the government started its move to merge the bumiputra-focused investment institutions. 

“The consolidation is now at the second stage, where you will see Ekuinas becoming a subsidiary of PNB,” a source says. 

In 2023, the government announced the plan to consolidate the country's bumiputera-focused investment institutions such as Ekuinas and Perlaburan Hartanah Bhd under YPB. 

PNB is a subsidiary of YPB, which was established in 1978 to promote bumiputera share ownership in the corporate sector. 

Other entities that are under YPB are Perbadanan Usahawan Nasional Bhd (PUNB) and Universiti Tun Abdul Razak (UNIRAZAK).

Another source said it is likely that Ekuinas structure and activities will remain unchanged. “There will still be Ekuinas, just that it will be parked under PNB,” the source says. 

In January, YPB took over a 5.02% stake in Icon Offshore Bhd from Ekuinas, Bursa’s filings shows. 

According to Ekuinas’ 2023 annual report, Ekuinas is currently managing an investment portfolio of RM4.24 billion. To date, Ekuinas has direct and outsourced investments in 48 companies involved in its core target sectors, namely education, fast moving consumer goods, oil and gas, retail, healthcare, and services.

The talk on Syed Arafat leaving Ekuinas has been in the market for some time, especially after the start of the consolidation last year.

When contacted, both Syed Yasir and Aliff declined to comment. 

Syed Yasir took office in March 2016. Prior to the appointment, he was leading Ekuinas’ investment team.

Ekuinas is a private equity firm established by the government back in September 2009, to promote bumiputera economic participation. Its first CEO was Datuk Abdul Rahman Ahmad, who is currently the CEO of PNB.

Aliff, 38, joined Ekuinas as a director of investment in 2017.

According to Ekuinas’ website, Aliff was a director of investment banking at UBS AG and has led a number of mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and capital market transactions in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.

Before UBS AG, he was in the regional merger and acquisition team of CIMB Investment Bank and the investment banking division of Maybank Investment Bank.

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Ekuinas announces CEO Syed Yasir Arafat to step down on March 31 
Change of guard at Ekuinas — sources