KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 29): NexG Bhd (KL:NEXG), formerly known as Datasonic Group Bhd, has secured a fresh six-year contract worth RM1.73 billion from the Ministry of Home Affairs to supply Malaysian passports.
The contract was awarded to NexG’s wholly owned subsidiary, Datasonic Technologies Sdn Bhd (DTSB), the identity solutions company said in a filing with Bursa Malaysia on Friday.
DTSB will supply passports to the Immigration Department starting June 1, 2026 until May 31, 2032.
As part of the contract, DTSB is required to furnish a RM14.4 million performance bond valid until May 31, 2033. The company is also required to implement the government’s Professional Training and Education for Growing Entrepreneurs — Ready to Work (Protégé-RTW), training at least 720 participants over the contract period, at no cost to the government.
In a separate statement, NexG said that the new contract is structured on a pay-per-use basis, with a ceiling contract value dependent on actual passport issuance volumes.
“This procurement model ensures that the government only pays for the number of passports required, without any upfront investment or capital expenditure,” NexG said.
The company said it will deliver the “next generation of passports” embedded with the latest security and durability features.
“This is fully compliant with International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and incorporates biometric technology for stronger protection and seamless use with e-gates,” it said.
It also noted that this long-term contract will deliver a “substantial positive” financial impact for the group and provides a strong platform for growth.
NexG said that the contract will start contributing to its earnings from the financial year ending March 31, 2027 (FY2027) onwards, spanning the six-year period.
NexG secured the long-term contract after short-term extensions earlier this year.
Earlier in July, the group got six-month renewals starting Dec 1, 2025, to supply passport chips, documents and biodata pages, keeping things running until the new contract starts in June 2026.
The Home Ministry has relied on NexG as the government’s sole passport supplier since 2015, when DTSB was first awarded a five-year RM318.75 million contract to deliver 12.5 million passport chips. Since then, the contract has been extended multiple times.
In a separate filing, NexG announced that its executive chairman and chief executive officer Datuk Abu Hanifah Noordin had acquired 150.34 million units of warrants at 19 sen per warrant. The warrants are held by Velocity Capital Sdn Bhd in the form of a pledged securities account for Rembulan Lestari Sdn Bhd.
This led to Abu Hanifah being deemed as holding 13.16% of the company’s outstanding warrants.
Early this month, NexG announced its plan to diversify into property and construction businesses by acquiring a 32.61% stake in Classita Holdings Bhd (KL:CLASSITA) plus warrants for RM60.31 million cash.
Shares in NexG settled up one sen or 2.08% at 49 sen on Friday, giving the identity solutions, digital trust ID and financial services company a market capitalisation of RM1.64 billion. Year to date, the counter has risen over 75%.