KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 9): The government plans to introduce a family office model for Forest City in Johor that allows a family office to serve multiple affluent families simultaneously.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said a multi-family office (MFO) model will be introduced to allow licensed fund managers to provide services to several families, including approved single-family office (SFO) funds.

Forest City’s SFO scheme currently allows one family to manage its funds in Malaysia with zero tax on qualifying income for up to 20 years.

Additional requirements comprise at least RM30 million in assets under management, allocating a minimum of RM10 million or 10% of total assets into local or promoted investments, and a minimum expenditure of RM500,000 annually on local operations, including maintaining a physical office in Malaysia.

Further details on the planned MFO model were not disclosed, though Anwar noted that the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JSSEZ) Master Plan and Blueprint will be launched by the end of this year.

Malaysia’s SFO scheme aims to attract ultra-high-net-worth individuals and family investment entities into Malaysia.

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) previously said Malaysia is on track to have family offices managing assets worth RM2 billion by end-2026.

The scheme was launched in September 2024 as part of an effort to inject life into the Forest City development that now forms part of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone.

The plan to introduce an MFO model is a progression of the scheme. 

MFOs offer wealthy families shared infrastructure, professional management, and access to broader investment opportunities, making them ideal for families who may not meet the SFO thresholds or those who prefer collaborative models.