KUALA LUMPUR (Oct 13): Sime Darby Bhd’s (KL:SIME) wholly owned subsidiary, Sime Darby Holdings Bhd (SDHB), has been slapped with a RM150.18 million tax bill from the Inland Revenue Board (IRB) for the 2017 to 2023 assessment years.
In a bourse filing on Tuesday (Oct 13), Sime Darby said the tax bill, which includes penalties, arose after the IRB classified interest income from SDHB’s treasury activities as taxable under Section 4(c) of the Income Tax Act 1967.
SDHB received the notices on Sept 30 and has 30 days to appeal. After consulting its tax and legal advisers, Sime Darby said it believes it has valid grounds to challenge the assessments and intends to appeal and initiate legal proceedings.
The group said it would provide updates if there were any material developments.
Sime Darby reported a 57.8% decline in quarterly net profit to RM322 million for the three months ended June 30, 2026 (4QFY2026), from RM763 million a year earlier, while revenue fell 5.9% to RM16.71 billion from RM17.76 billion.
The lower bottom line was due to impairments and provisions recognised during the quarter and the absence of an Malaysia Vision Valley (MVV) land-disposal gain.
The corresponding quarter last year included RM443 million from the MVV disposal.
This brought the full year’s net profit to RM1.76 billion for FY2026, down by 14.5% from RM2.06 billion in FY2025. Annual revenue slipped 0.08% to RM69.47 billion, down from RM70.06 billion.
Sime Darby’s share price closed unchanged at RM2.46, with a market capitalisation of RM16.77 billion. Year-to-date, the stock has gained 20%.