The Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) held a number of events in Penang this week as part of its efforts to increase investor education in the northern region as well as raise awareness on capital market financing opportunities. 

The highlight of the events is Bersama InvestSmart^® @Penang 2023¹, SC’s flagship investor education fair which is being held for the first time in the state.

The three-day event from 26 May 2023 is aimed at promoting investor education and financial literacy to enable investors to make informed investment decisions and to avoid scams and illegal schemes. 

The Chief Minister of Penang, YAB Chow Kon Yeow officiated the opening ceremony of the event, which was held in Queensbay Mall, Bayan Lepas, this afternoon. The event was also attended by senior state government officials and capital market and financial industry leaders. 

With the theme ‘Silap Labur Duit Lebur’, the event featured more than 35 exhibitors. They include Financial Education Network (FEN), Bursa Malaysia Berhad, Federation of Investment Managers Malaysia (FIMM), Private Pension Administrator (PPA) and several financial and capital market industry players.

The SC Chairman Dato’ Seri Dr. Awang Adek Hussin said at the opening ceremony that Penang is expected to play a bigger role in the development of the country’s economy and the capital market.

“Penang has a number of companies listed on Bursa Malaysia, with 85 currently listed on the Main, ACE and Leap Markets. Another Penang-based company is also expected to go public before the end of this quarter,” he said.   

“By the end of 2022, over 470 Penang companies had raised over RM193 million using alternative finance platforms such as equity crowdfunding (ECF) and peer-to-peer (P2P) financing,” he said. “As such, we believe that the capital market can play an important role in realising the full potential of Penang's economy.”  

Dato’ Seri Dr. Awang Adek added that providing access to financing and investment opportunities will enable the capital market to help local businesses, especially SMEs, grow and complete the economic eco-system of Penang.

Apart from Bersama InvestSmart^® @Penang 2023, the SC has also organised other outreach programmes in Penang this week. 

These include the NaviGate: Capital Market Green Financing Series (NaviGate) and a workshop by Capital Markets Malaysia, an affiliate of the SC, on Incorporating Sustainable Practices within the Supply Chain.

The NaviGate programme was held on 25 May 2023, to create greater awareness on capital market financing, including alternative financing avenues such as ECF and P2P financing platforms for businesses in Penang in meeting their green and sustainability financing needs.  

This is the second NaviGate programme held this year, following a similar programme held in Johor in March this year. It attracted some 100 participants from the Johor business communities.

These programmes, part of the SC’s initiatives to support the growth of businesses, are also in line with efforts by Johor and Penang state governments in advancing their SME industries based on green economy and sustainability.  

More than 15,000 people are expected to visit InvestSmart^® in Penang. During the three-day event, there will be free public talks and panel discussions by financial and capital market industry experts.

The organisers have also lined up more than 200 free one-to-one financial planning sessions to help members of the public learn more about good financial and retirement planning. The latter is part of the #FinPlan4U initiative. 

Bersama InvestSmart^® @Penang is also held in conjunction with the National Training Week organised by the Ministry of Human Resource and HRD Corp.   

1. The InvestSmart^® initiative was first introduced in 2014 to empower investors with awareness and knowledge that will assist them in making informed investment decisions. As of December 2022, the InvestSmart^® initiative has engaged directly with more than two million people and reached out to millions more nationwide through digital and mainstream media.