BADLISYAH: IFSA milestone for Islamic finance

Often times, when a general election draws near, I usually get a bit nostalgic and proud of what my country has achieved within 56 short years as an independent and sovereign nation.

It also gets me excited about what else we, as Malaysians, can do to better ourselves as a nation of dreamers and builders.



Naturally, as a Malaysian who has been involved in the Islamic finance industry globally, I am especially proud of what my country has achieved in this field over the years. The industry’s humble beginning in Malaysia started formally in 1963 when Lembaga Tabung Haji was established by the government to facilitate savings among Muslims in a Shariah-compliant manner to prepare for their haj.



I am too young (since I was not born yet at that time) to know what actually transpired then but I am glad it did happen because it led to the creation of the first regulated licensed Islamic bank in the world, Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd, 20 years later. A great many things happened after that, including the establishment of the first licensed takaful company in the world, the first licenced Islamic window operations and the first licenced Islamic asset manager.

Islamic finance was the epitome of the democratisation of the financial market in Malaysia. It brought about real financial inclusion for all.



There are just too many deliberate and structured developments that the industry players, the government of the day and the financial regulators did since then to develop the industry for me to mention here. As such, suffice for me to say that they were generally positive developments that helped propel Malaysia further as a global leader in the industry every step of the way.



Nonetheless, what I will identify as the most important development made, which helped changed the world’s view on Islamic finance, is the institutionalisation of a comprehensive legislative, regulatory, legal and Shariah framework for the industry in Malaysia — the first of its kind since the fall of the Ottoman Empire in the early 20th century. I dare say that this can and should be considered as one of the most significant paradigm shifting events in mankind’s modern hi story. Al l Malaysians should hold their heads high for this contribution to modern civilisation.



Thirty years passed and today, as a result of the comprehensive framework established, Malaysia has become the largest, deepest and broadest Islamic finance market anywhere in the world with the most comprehensive product offerings — from the simplest basic savings product to the most sophisticated investment products for everyone and anyone in the country, be they individuals or corporate bodies, residents or foreigners, Muslims or non-Muslims.



As I contemplate on what to expect in Malaysia post the 13th General Election (GE13), I can’t help but be excited with the prospect of Islamic finance moving forward. The reason for my excitement is because finally after 50 years of existence in the country, Islamic finance is being given the needed facelift and makeover.



Unbeknown to many, come May 2, 2013, the comprehensive legislative, regulatory, legal and Shariah framework that has propelled the Malaysian Islamic industry to be where it is today will be overhauled, refreshed and strengthened in the much awaited Islamic Financial Services Act (IFSA).



Malaysia’s Islamic finance industry is ready to move forward.

The new IFSA, read together with the Central Bank Act (CBA), provides a much stronger and more effective platform for Islamic finance, unparalleled with any other platform anywhere else in the world.

Islamic finance is now, for the first time, completely institutionalised as a component of the Malaysian financial market by parliamentary legislation.

Its future posterity and prosperity cannot be subjected to the whims and fancies of any individual who may or may not believe in Islamic finance.



Any fundamental change in the industry must now be congruent with what Parliament has set and if it is not, then only Parliament can make the change.

The sanctity and certainty of Shariah management and governance in the industry has also been embedded and institutionalised comprehensively in parliamentary legislation.

The IFSA and the CBA clearly define the different duties and responsibilities of all parties in the industry in regard to Shariah-compliance and help clarify the relationship between the financial regulators, the licensed financial institutions and the Judiciary. It is the first time such thing has ever been done in the world. As a result, the certainty of doing business in the Islamic finance industry will be better than ever and will provide a very conducive platform for the industry to grow bigger and better. Perhaps it is time people look at doing global sukuk issuance under Reg S or 144A using Malaysian law instead of English law.



I anticipate there will be a period of adjustment for the industry in Malaysia as we take in the various changes that the industry will have to go through post the IFSA.

Once everything settles down, I foresee many new product offerings coming up and the Islamic financial institutions attaining a more enhanced competitive edge in the market vis-a-vis conventional riba-based financial institutions. I see the industry entering into its next 50 years of development with a renewed confidence and clearer sense of destiny.



Yes! Our country’s GE13 is coming and as much as I am intrigued like everyone else about the possible outcome of our democratic election, the one thing that I am sure of is that irrespective of the election result, our Islamic finance industry is poised and ready for more great things. I would urge all my fellow proponents of Islamic finance to be ready for the next push.


[Badlisyah Abdul Ghani is the executive director and chief executive officer of CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd]       

THE COLUMN APPEARED IN THE MALAYSIAN RESERVE, 4 MARCH 2013]

Zafri to helm Great Eastern Takaful

There have been at least two senior movements within the takaful industry.

First, Great Eastern Takaful Sdn Bhd (GETSB) has elevated Zafri Ab. Halim (photo below), appointed representative and CFO, as the new CEO for effective March 1.

He replaced Mohamad Salihuddin Ahmad who was the company’s executive director/CEO since it was officially launched in December 2010.

Second, Etiqa Insurance and Takaful CEO has resigned [see new break by The Malaysian Reserve  here], prompting the elevation of Kamaluddin Ahmad [CEO of Etiqa Insurance Bhd and head of general insurance] as actiong CEO.

Zafri was described as one of the pioneers in laying the foundation of GETSB. He was GETSB’s Chief Financial Officer in which he oversaw all financial and fiscal management aspects of the company’s operations both locally and regionally, in line with the Group’s overall strategic objectives, according to a statement from the company.

“We will pursue our main strategies in penetrating the local market with our dual agency approach and direct agency under Great Eastern Takaful Own Agency (GOA),” he said in the same statement.

GETSB, officially launched on Dec 10, 2010, is a joint venture company between I Great Capital Holdings Sdn Bhd (i-Great), a subsidiary of Great Eastern Holdings Limited and Koperasi Angkatan Tentera (M) Bhd (KATMB).

Zafri holds a Master of Science in Project Management from George Washington University, USA, as well as a Bachelors Degree in Accountancy. He is a member of Malaysian Institute of Accountant (MIA) and a certified Chartered Accountant, according to the statement.

TMR: Etiqa insurance/takaful boss quits

By Azli Jamil

Etiqa Insurance and Takaful chief executive officer (CEO) Hans de Cuyper (picture below) has left the company in a surprise development.



According to a source who declined to be named, de Cuyper who assumed the post in 2011, has not been the CEO for some time but did not specify when and why.



His position is now filled by acting CEO Kamaluddin Ahmad who joined the company in June 2012. Kamaluddin is also the CEO of Etiqa Insurance Bhd and head of general insurance.



Etiqa Takaful Bhd is headed by Ahmad Rizlan Azman who joined the company in November 2012 as CEO and head of life/family business and employee benefits.



Etiqa’s website shows the management structure of the company without de Cuyper’s name, while its director’s page shows that de Cuyper is still a director with Maybank Ageas Holdings Bhd and Etiqa Insurance.



A visit to the company’s social media site shows that de Cuyper’s last appearance for the company was a Chinese New Year celebration posting uploaded on Feb 22, 2013.



Etiqa is keeping mum about the news and has not made any announcement on de Cuyper’s departure.



It is unknown if his departure would affect Etiqa’s aim to be the insurance and takaful leader in written premiums by 2015, as reported by The Malaysian Reserve in October 2012.



Etiqa is 69%-owned by Etiqa International Holdings Sdn Bhd and 31% by Belgium and Netherlands-based Ageas Insurance International.

 [THE MALAYSIAN RESERVE, 8 March 2013]

ZULKIFLI: Window dressing, scholar wannabes

By Dr Zulkifli Hasan

SHARIAH scholars in Islamic finance are frequently put in a dilemma position. They have been accused upside down with numerous allegations even without any basis. During early implementation of Islamic finance, Shariah scholars were alleged to have formed an alliance with Islamic capitalists to create a new market for Islamic finance sector.

In this instance, the Islamic banks were guided by those well-paid clerics and always issued rulings according to their needs. In fact, since 1980s, many of the scholars have been accused of being bankers’ window dressing and of overstretching the rules of Shariah to provide easy fatwas to Islamic financial institutions.

Lately, it is quite surprising that the scholars have been criticised even by Islamic bankers. The myth of alliance between Islamic bankers and Shariah scholars seems to be no longer relevant. One of the critics refers to an allegation where the Islamic financial market globally has been invaded by Shariah scholar wannabes, a new term introduced to refer to the so-called unqualified Shariah scholars.

Infiltration of Islamic Banks 

These Shariah scholar wannabes have infiltrated Islamic banks, regulatory authorities and Shariah governing bodies without due consideration to stakeholders value. Much more serious is where the criticism includes allegations of changing the meaning of Quranic verses and  Hadith by those Shariah scholar wannabes.

Caution and criticism are mostly welcomed and in fact warranted but not baseless allegations and wrongful accusations. Constructive criticisms particularly on the governance issue in Islamic financial institutions will surely contribute to the development of Islamic finance industry. The unqualified criticisms will lead the industry nowhere and in fact hinder its development and negate the public confidence.

Considering the significance of this issue, this article attempts to address several misconceptions about Islamic finance even by the so-called truly Islamic finance practitioners with the aim of providing a basic understanding and removing any inaccurate or unfounded prejudice.

1. Islamic finance is purely a commercial transaction: Islamic finance concept is grounded in ethics, values and norms. As Islamic finance is not pure commercial transaction and not only confined to nominate contracts, Islamic financial institutions therefore should be commercially and morally oriented entities. Islamic finance assumes a moral based value proposition which offers solutions for the economic and financial problems. These moral and ethical value systems require that the decisionmaking process in Islamic finance must not be solely based on efficiency and equity but must have social and ethical dimensions.

2. Stakeholders value confines to shareholders interest: The stakeholder value orientation is not only concern for shareholders but also to protect all the stakeholders’ interests and rights. The stakeholders value, conceptually, requires Islamic financial institutions to balance the corporate goal of maximising the profit with the duty to uphold the principle of social justice and maqasid Shariah and this entails the notion of protecting the interests and rights of all stakeholders within the Shariah rules. Even the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision on “Enhancing Corporate Governance for Banking Organisations”, expands the term “stakeholders” to include employees, customers, depositors, suppliers, supervisors, government and the community.

Not only that, the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development further classifies the stakeholders into shareholders, internal stakeholders (employees and labour unions), operational partners (customers, suppliers, creditors and contractors), and the social community (state authorities, trade union, non-governmental organisations and civil society).

3. The true meaning of Bay is sale and it has no element of risk: Islamic finance is gharar-free, maysir-free and riba-free, but not risk-free. Since Islamic financial products and services are designed based on different nominate contracts, it is erroneous and would be a sheer misconception to say that Islamic finance is risk-free or less risky. Moral and Ethical Dimensions Furthermore, Islamic financial products and services should have moral and ethical dimensions and therefore any transaction should be embedded in real economy which offers an alternative financing paradigm. At this point, the conceptual framework of Islamic finance suggests that it should be more than financialisation of the nominate contracts. Islamic financial institutions should take necessary risks equitably and not simply shifting the liability unfairly to the customer. In other words, Islamic finance should represent a holistic approach to financing not only bankable customers but also to allocate certain funds for non-bankable and underprivileged people as part of its social responsibility to the society and ummah.

4. Islamic financial institutions are purely profit oriented entities: Based on its epistemological dimension, Islamic finance is actually a society oriented financing proposition as it aims to serve the community, ummah and not solely to the markets. Islamic finance must not be confined within profit-driven orientation but it should also address issues on economic and sustainable development, social justice and social investing oriented principles. With reference to several empirical studies, the current Islamic finance practices on the other hand do not indicate positive correlation with human development index scores. Surprisingly, the corporate social responsibility performance of Islamic financial institutions also has been rather weak and poor as compared to its conventional counterpart. This position demands Islamic financial institutions to seriously reevaluate and review their current practices and future direction.

5. Shariah scholar wannabes infiltrated the industry’s wellbeing: The critics on the roles of Shariah scholars are always blown out of proportion and over-exaggerated. Undeniably, Shariah scholars, either senior or young scholars or conservative or pragmatic scholars have their own unique contribution to the industry’s wellbeing but their approaches may be different. This should not be the reason of denying their significant contribution. The “conservative” scholars may view the legitimacy of Islamic financial products and services to be based on the legal and mechanistic aspects of Shariah. The products and services are classified as lawful and Shariah-compliant or Shariah-based if they meet the conditions of a valid muamalat transaction after going through the ordinary process of usul al fiqh.

On the other hand, the “pragmatic” scholars admit that Islamic finance should not confine their function by solely emphasising the fiqh aspect. The “pragmatic” scholars acknowledged that Islamic financial products and services should not only be valid and lawful, must fulfill the spirit of maqasid Shariah but must also be ethical and uphold the Islamic values.

Allegations Misleading

The critics upon Shariah scholars of either being banker’s window dressing or invasion of the scholar wannabes are actually misleading. These allegations to a certain extent will negatively influence the Islamic finance industry as they are not supported with any empirical evidence. Rather than discussing these unnecessary issues, the Islamic finance discourse should actually be focusing on its fundamental principles and how to ensure its sustainability. It is important to critically evaluate the performance of Islamic financial institutions against their foundational base and at the same time to maintain its positive development.

The existing practices of Islamic finance so far have failed to establish a distinct identity or to draw a clear demarcation line with conventional banks. In fact, with several corporate failures of Islamic financial institutions, such as the closures of Ihlas Finance House in Turkey, the Islamic Bank of South Africa and the Islamic Investment Co of Egypt, and corporate difficulties, as in the case of the Dubai Islamic Bank, and Bank Islam Malaysia Bhd, Islamic finance is clearly not immune from the crisis. Islamic finance must learn from the history and take lesson from previous financial crisis. We do not want to hear that the only lesson that Islamic financial institutions have learned is that they never learn.

Dr Zulkifli Hasan is a senior lecturer at Shariah and Law faculty of Islamic Science University of Malaysia. He is a Shariah committee member of Affin Islamic Bank Bhd and also sits in the committee member for the Association of Shariah Advisors. Opinions expressed in this article are his personal views. This article appeared in the Feb 25, 2013 issue of The Malaysian Reserve


[The Malaysian Reserve, Feb 25, 2013]

Malaysia’s sukuk issuances market expected to see new boost in 2013

by TANU PANDEY

Sukuk, the Islamic equivalent for bonds, has become an option for many when they need stable long-term financing. The instrument that performed extremely well in the last fiscal (2012) is expected to continue the trend this year.

In fact, this year the issuance of sukuk may even pick up after a little slackening trend in the last quarter of 2012, according to CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd executive director and chief executive officer  Badlisyah Abdul Ghani (picture). CIMB, it may be mentioned here, was one of the top sukuk issuers globally in 2012. In an email interview with The Malaysian Reserve (TMR), Badlisyah points out that the financing needs for the growing infrastructure sector in Malaysia is expected to give a further boost to the sukuk issuance market which may see infrastructure, blue chip companies and financial institutions dominating the sukuk issues this year.

TMR: 2012 was a record year for sukuk issuance. Do you hope to see the same trend in 2013 and which banks or financial institutions do you see leading the way?

Badlisyah: We anticipate another strong year for sukuk in the traditional markets where sukuk is actively pursued, ie, Malaysia and the Middle East (in particular Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates). There was a slowdown of sukuk issuance in the last quarter of 2012 in the Middle East but this should pick up in 2013. We expect plenty of infrastructure and development projects to come on stream in the near- to medium-term and those projects would require long-term and stable funding source. We see a healthy deal pipeline at CIMB and expect to end this year on a high again. I would assume other significant players in the league table would also have a healthy deal pipeline and this bodes well for the market.

TMR: How would you rate the Malaysian market’s appetite for sukuk and Islamic financing and is there a possibility that it could outperform other financial instruments?

Badlisyah: Malaysia will see a lot of infrastructure projects in the coming years and sukuk has become a popular choice for a number of reasons, including a wider investor base (Islamic and conventional investors) which typically translates to better price tension in favour of the issuers; tax incentives that make borrowing cost cheaper and price transparency that makes it attractive to investors.

On a yearly basis since we entered the new millennium, sukuk has outpaced conventional bonds in terms of growth. The same can be said about Islamic financing in the banking sector in Malaysia. I do not see this trend changing especially with the new Securities Commission’s (SC) framework on Shariah-compliant stocks on Bursa Malaysia coming into force this year. To be eligible as a Shariah-compliant stock, the framework requires companies to ensure that the majority of their financing is Shariah-compliant. Being a Shariah-compliant stock allows a company to tap into a wider investor base, thus giving better liquidity to their stocks and better profiling.

TMR: What is the target for Islamic finance in Malaysia for 2013 and is it well on the trend?

Badlisyah: There are no specific targets for the Islamic finance industry on a yearly basis. There is a 2020 industry target, set under the Financial Market Blueprint, of 40% overall share of market. We foresee that sukuk will continue to dominate the debt capital market space and we expect it to account between 70% and 75% of the total ringgit issuance this year, as seen in the last five years. We will continue to see steady growth in Islamic banking assets and deposits at north of 20% boosted by tax incentives as well as the revised Shariah screening framework by the SC.

TMR: Do you plan to increase sukuk issuance market share this year? any big issues that you are looking at?

Badlisyah: In 2013, just like in other years before it, we are committed to deliver the best results for our clients in the sukuk market. We always strive to be a significant player in the market and hopefully, we will land ourselves among the top sukuk arrangers/managers (if not the top) on the league table. One of our key aims is to meet our clients’ needs through practical solutions and innovative ideas. We believe that our strong and long track record in sukuk as well as our enhanced distribution capabilities will allow us to perform well again this year. We expect to see infrastructure projects, bluechip companies and financial institutions dominating the sukuk issuers profile list this year. However, it is hard to say which deal will be a big issuance in the market.

TMR: What more can be done by the government and financial institutions to promote the growth of the sector?

Badlisyah: The Malaysian government has done more for Islamic finance than any other government in the world. Of course, there will always be room for improvement. The government just needs to continue supporting this growth through effective policies as needed from time to time. If there is anything more that the government can do now is to undertake more of their own financial transactions through Islamic banking and finance industry. This will naturally boost the growth exponentially. As far as financial institutions are concerned, they just need to do the business more effectively and efficiently, providing the same if not superior level of delivery and services compared to the conventional offerings.

[The Malaysian Reserve, Feb 25, 2013]

BADLISYAH: Shariah development, innovation can be easy

Today, I want to talk about business and product developments as well as innovations in Islamic finance and the issues plaguing it all these years. Don’t get me wrong, we have seen a lot of developments and innovations in Islamic finance but it had been a struggle every single time we came up with something new.

It is better now but there is still a lot of ignorance in the market place across all levels of stakeholders, especially among those whom I have labelled Shariah scholar wannabes in my last column. It seems what I said then had a fairly hot reception. As the Malay saying goes, “Siapa makan cili, dia rasa pedas!”

I can’t help it if people felt I was talking about them if they see themselves as those who claim to be Shariah scholars, when in reality they do not have the authority nor the qualification to be one. If they are doctors we would be calling them quacks! However, I don’t want to belabour anymore about these people but they have unfortunately been a bane to development and innovation in Islamic finance.

A lot of our efforts to bring further progress to the industry under the guidance of real and genuinely qualified Shariah scholars have been criticised unjustifiably and irrationally by these people. Also, in many instances, these people have also been responsible for certain developments and innovations in the industry that were just wrong under Shariah. To the extent that some of them have even argued that there was no point developing or innovating for Islamic finance as an alternative to conventional finance because riba-based banking is already Shariah compliant in the first place. It is halal because there is no excessive charging of interest. So why bother developing Islamic finance at all?

Some people, including the Shariah scholar wannabes, argued that what we do in Islamic finance is not really Islamic. All the products that we have today are merely replicating and copying conventional finance. To them, Islamic finance must be different in its entirety. It cannot carry the same value proposition as conventional finance. As a result, Islamic finance fails to be competitive and a real alternative to conventional finance in many jurisdictions. Malaysia is the one exception but these weird perceptions still exist.

In order to fully appreciate development and innovation in the industry we must shed our ignorance of Islamic finance and its history. We must understand that Islamic finance is nothing new. It’s at least 1,400 years old. It has been in existence since the advent of Islam and was seen throughout the various economically rich and powerful Islamic civilisations in history. It is impossible for Islamic finance to not have been transacted in one form or another during that period. It may not have been called Islamic banking or Islamic finance but it existed, otherwise, how could Islamic civilisations become the nexus of global trade and finance for close to a thousand years?

Islamic finance was practised in several forms back then. There was the Mudharabah, murabahah, ijarah, wakaf, istisna and many more financial products that became the mainstay of commerce during that period. It is interesting to note that Islamic civilisation had developed most of the modern economic and financial theory that we know today.

A lot of financial products that we know today as conventional products such as debt/ fixed income papers or bonds, travellers cheques, registered shares, remittance, trade finance, and so on, were all developed and innovated by Islamic civilisations and later adopted by the conventional market.

If we study this history further, we will realise that a lot of these financial products that have been reintroduced into our industry today had in reality pre-existed Islam. Mudharabah is in fact 3,000 years older than Islam, developed under the Babylonian and Assyrian Empires during the Mesopotamian era. It was a product that was used and practised for everything and anything in the market then but when it was adopted by the Muslims, after the advent of Islam, it was changed, innovated upon and made to be Shariah compliant by, among others, having its use limited to productive activities that were consistent with Shariah. Wakaf was taken practically lock, stock and barrel from the Greeks.

We had a lot of development and innovation back then, which included the “Islamisation” of conventional or jahiliyah products. And it was done and exemplified by none other than Prophet Muhammad (SAW) himself. We must ask ourselves whether there really is any difference to what we are doing today. I must say the answer is a resounding no! A lot of the conventional products that we have in the market have been “Islamised” in a way where what was not Shariah compliant was made Shariah compliant.

If we really study history in the way we have developed and innovated Islamic financial products since the advent of Islam, we would note that the products that we have in the market arguably cannot be said to be “holy”. Thus, it is able to be further innovated upon and be changed. We can be creative on how we look at all these products in order to best serve the Muslim community or Ummah.

For example, if we take Mudharabah and tweak it, it does not mean that we are changing the nature of Mudharabah nor are we defeating its spirit.

Mudharabah is a product that has been adopted and adapted by the Prophet (SAW) and it will remain as a distinct Shariah compliant product.

But when we look at mudharabah and change 2% or 5% of the structure or the concept, it becomes another product altogether. It is no longer a product called mudharabah.

One can call it whatever name one desires, it will be another product that is structured in a manner that is Shariah compliant. It will still be something that we can transact and undertake in our industry today without going astray from Shariah. That is what we call innovation.

Unfortunately in many parts of the world, even in our own country, Malaysia, there are people who feel that we cannot change Islamic financial products that have been adopted or developed by the Prophet (SAW).

It is supposedly blasphemous. This mentality needs to change for the good of the Ummah. In the example given, we are not changing mudharabah. We are simply innovating mudharabah, creating another product that is still Shariah compliant. So over time, we have mudharabah, ijarah, and other things including this new product, which we have not named for example.

In fact, mudharabah exists in the conventional market even until today. It may not be a regulated activity in the financial market but mudharabah is widely practised across the globe including in Europe even for activities such as wine refinery and vineyards. We have a Shariah compliant mudharabah and a non-Shariah compliant mudharabah in the world.

So when we innovate and develop in Islamic finance, we are purely coming up with commercial products that cater to the needs of society in a Shariah compliant manner. It is the same thing when we innovate and develop products in the food and beverage sector. When we came up with the halal version of the mooncake, we were simply changing some of the original ingredients of the mooncake that were not halal and replacing it with something compliant with Shariah. If it is not blasphemous to innovate on food, then it should not be so when we innovate on financial products.

At the end of the day, the only real comparison between Islamic and conventional finance, if we really need to articulate a difference between the two, is that one is Shariah compliant while the other is not. Everything else is the same. Innovation and development is easy under Shariah but some of us are just hell bent on making life difficult for all of us.

Badlisyah Abdul Ghani is executive director and chief executive officer of CIMB Islamic Bank Bhd. This article appeared in The Malaysian Reserve, a business/finance daily published out of  Kuala Lumpur.

[The Malaysian Reserve, Feb 4, 2013]

Takaful Ikhlas group health policy said to be on track to boost earnings

By Kamalavacini Ramanathan

Shariah-based financial protection provider, Takaful Ikhlas Sdn Bhd, has recorded RM12.16 million in contribution as of January 2013 from its very first kind of customised group hospitalisation and surgical product, “ChoicePlus” introduced in September last year.

Takaful Ikhlas chairman Sharkawi Alis said to date, ChoicePlus has more than 21,000 policy holders from about 57 corporations.

“We anticipate to achieve RM66.5 million annual contribution from ChoicePlus with the participation of more than 70,000 members and 200 companies,” he said at the launch of the product in Kuala Lumpur yesterday.

ChoicePlus is a medical aid card targeting all employers, not individuals, in Malaysia up to 75 years old for the purpose of looking after their employees’ health and welfare.

“We believe that ChoicePlus is capable of increasing our company’s contribution to earnings. At present we are on track and we believe we can achieve the target as the demand is already there,” he added.

Meanwhile, president and chief executive officer Ab Latiff Abu Bakar said apart from providing medical solutions, ChoicePlus takes a step higher to educate the participants on wellness management by conducting healthcare or wellness programmes.

Supported by the medical advisory board (MAB), he said it has a team of specialists both in-house and from the medical industry to conduct the wellness programme including day-care facilities.

“Any company with more than 10 employees may take up ChoicePlus and it is an extended healthcare policy to their (policy holder’s) spouse and children.

“We also view the importance of this product to be in line with current needs, as through ChoicePlus we also help companies to control their medical costs,” he said.

He said through its hospital health product segment, the company recorded contributions of more than RM50 million last year involving 154 companies. He also said that Takaful Ikhlas has plans in the pipeline to introduce a few more new health products for individuals this year.

“It is similar to ChoicePlus but it’ll be more focused on medical coverage for the individuals,” he said, adding that the company also plans to launch a new investment-linked product in the first-quarter of 2013.

Established in 2003, Takaful Ikhlas is a wholly-owned subsidiary of MNRB Holdings Bhd and has attracted 1.8 million participants comprising individuals and companies.

[The Malaysian Reserve, Feb 22, 2013]