This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on June 15, 2026 - June 21, 2026
In support of the MY Value Up programme, the Employees Provident Fund, Permodalan Nasional Bhd, and Retirement Fund Inc will act as key participants, according to Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi in his keynote address at the Invest Malaysia conference last Tuesday.
These government-linked investment firms will channel part of their funds into companies that adopt the MY Value Up recommendations. Ahmad Zahid said the move is aimed at ensuring that companies with stronger governance, disciplined capital allocation and higher transparency standards are recognised not only by the market, but also by Malaysia’s largest institutional investors.
As a flagship initiative of the Capital Market Masterplan 2026-2030 launched earlier by the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), the programme seeks to enhance the visibility and attractiveness of leading listed companies to both domestic and foreign investors.
The initiative currently targets 88 companies, which collectively account for about 80% of the local bourse’s market capitalisation. Participating companies are required to submit reports outlining how they plan to improve their performance and market positioning.
The SC has indicated that the programme could become mandatory should listed firms fail to demonstrate meaningful improvements in performance and governance.
While the support of government-linked funds for the programme is commendable, their investment decisions must be guided by clear and stringent benchmarks. This is essential to ensure that public funds entrusted to these institutions are deployed prudently, and that taxpayers’ interests are adequately safeguarded.
More importantly, these institutional investors must not be pressured into allocating capital merely to fulfil the programme’s objectives.
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