This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on April 6, 2026 - April 12, 2026

YTL Cement Bhd’s takeover of the nondescript Concrete Engineering Products Bhd (KL:CEPCO) did not really come as a surprise to those in the concrete and building industry.

Cepco’s performance in the highly competitive business has been choppy. YTL Cement, on the other hand, has been aggressively buying up competitors to expand its dominance in the cement and concrete industry.

On April 1, YTL Cement announced it had acquired a 53.5% stake in Cepco from several shareholders at RM2.60 per share, a premium of almost 40% to the market price. The purchase triggered a mandatory general offer (MGO) for the rest of the shares in Cepco.

Among those who sold to YTL Cement was Inch Kenneth Kajang Rubber Public Ltd Co (KL:INCKEN), which held 19.32% of Cepco. The others that made up the 53.5% block were three private companies and six individuals. Among the six individuals was Datuk Che Muhamad Fasir Samsudin, who is the largest shareholder of FA Securities Sdn Bhd with 60% equity interest.

Interestingly, FA Securities, which was Cepco’s second-largest shareholder, sold its 15.4% stake on March 19 — just 12 days before YTL Cement launched the MGO for the company. Both the reason for the share sale and transaction price are not known. The share price closed at RM1.67 that day.

Apart from Che Muhamad Fasir, FA Securities is held by private companies Rantai Tiara Sdn Bhd, Juta Pragmatik Sdn Bhd and Dome Heights Sdn Bhd.

The purchasers of the 15.4% stake are unknown. Or could FA Securities have sold its block of shares in Cepco to its shareholders prior to YTL Cement’s offer?

Whatever the case may be, those who held on to their Cepco shares would be sitting on a handsome paper gain of 40% in a matter of just 12 days.

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