KUALA LUMPUR (March 27): Former Malayan Banking Bhd (KL:MAYBANK) group president and chief executive officer Tan Sri Abdul Farid Alias, currently an independent director of Bursa Malaysia Bhd (KL:BURSA), has been appointed as the non-executive chairman of the stock exchange operator by the Minister of Finance, effective May 1.

Abdul Farid, 56, will replace Tan Sri Abdul Wahid Omar, 61, who is retiring after his term ends on April 30. Abdul Wahid has been with the stock exchange for 12 years, first as its independent director from 2004 to 2011, before returning to serve as its chairman in May 2020. Prior to his current role, he served as group chairman of Permodalan Nasional Bhd from Aug 1, 2016 to June 30, 2018.

Abdul Farid was the group president and CEO of Maybank from August 2013 to April 2022. He joined the board of Bursa in July 2022. He is a seasoned chartered banker with 30 years career in the banking and financial services sector, with a focus on investment banking, commercial banking, and capital markets. Apart from Maybank, Abdul Farid had worked with Schroders Malaysia (L) Ltd, JPMorgan in Malaysia/Singapore and Khazanah Nasional Bhd, among others.

“The exchange will continue to strengthen and thrive under Abdul Farid, who embodies the same core values that drive Bursa Malaysia’s purpose-focused growth, ensuring a continuation of the exchange’s commitment to creating opportunities and growing value for our stakeholders,” Abdul Wahid said in a statement on Thursday.

“I am honoured to soon lead the board of Bursa Malaysia as its chairman, and to build on the strong governance, customer-centric culture, and strategic foresight provided by Abdul Wahid. Bursa Malaysia stands at a pivotal juncture, with much innovation potential as a multi-asset exchange, to better serve its diverse stakeholders. I look forward to steering the organisation together with other board members and Bursa Management, for the betterment of our stakeholders and nation,” said Abdul Farid in the same statement.

At Thursday's midday break, Bursa shares were up nine sen or 1.12% to settle at RM8.10, giving it a market capitalisation of RM6.56 billion. The stock has fallen 9% so far this year.