Sabahan CGC head says big plans for State
Published on: Wednesday, February 04, 2015
Kota Kinabalu: Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are the engines of a nation's economic growth. In Malaysia, SMEs form a major component of the economy, constituting 97.3 per cent of business establishments, employing a large section of the population and contributing significantly to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).Credit Guarantee Corporation Malaysia Berhad (CGC), the foremost organisation tasked with "Powering Malaysian Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)", has big plans for Sabah in 2015 and its newly appointed President/Chief Executive from January 1, 2015, Tuan Mohd Zamree Mohd Ishak,, is a Sabahan, the first to head CGC. "CGC's vision is to be an effective financial institution dedicated to promoting the growth and development of competitive and dynamic SMEs.
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"Supporting SME development is a type of public engagement that is crucial to the future of Malaysia's enterprising communities. "SMEs are crucial to the economic growth as they play an important role in the country's overall production network. "As such, developing a group of diverse and competitive SMEs is fundamental towards achieving robust and continued economic growth for any economies."CGC is constantly looking into ways on how it could further innovate to ensure its products suit SME financing requirements. "By identifying the needs of the SMEs and offering innovative products and solutions, CGC has been able to a large extent fulfil the SMEs' financing requirements."CGC's 427,000 SME customers have enjoyed the benefit of gaining greater access to financing, and achieved success in their business ventures with 43 credit guarantee schemes since CGC's inception in 1972.
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CGC is a limited company incorporated under the Companies Act 1965 on July 5, 1972. Its main objective is to play a developmental role in supporting the country's economic development agenda by assisting marginal but potentially viable SMEs, particularly enterprises without collateral or with inadequate collateral and track record, to obtain financing from the financial institutions. CGC facilitates SMEs access to financing through its guarantee schemes."I am going on a nationwide tour and I am so happy to start from my home state Sabah," Zamree said, adding that he was born in Kota Kinabalu. His parents were from Tawau and Keningau.
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"In Sabah, we have two branches, in Kota Kinabalu and Sandakan." His appointment came at a time when the economy of the country and Asean region count on the dynamism of the Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) to grow and transform the economic outlook. Mohd Zamree is determined to help Sabah with CGC's expertise to succeed as envisaged in the State Government's Halatuju policy for SMEs.Zamree brings with him vast experience in the areas of corporate and consumer banking as well as Islamic finance. He began his career with Malayan Banking Berhad (Maybank) in 1989 until 2009 and had held two senior positions at Maybank, namely Vice President, Consumer Banking and Executive Vice President, Corporate Banking.Zamree also served as the Chief Operations Officer of INCEIF – The Global University of Islamic Finance - since July 2009 up to his latest appointment with CGC. Apart from his role in INCEIF, Zamree is also a member of The Association of Chartered Islamic Finance Professionals (ACIFP). He holds a Master's Degree in Business Administration – MBA (Finance) from the University of Hull, United Kingdom and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) from the Saint Louis University, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America."I am aware that CGC is really not a well-known brand name," Zamree said, but he is determined to change all that perception with his more visible leadership. "My vision is wanting to see CGC become the household name for SMEs."The Credit Guarantee Corporation is a key institutional arrangement in facilitating greater access to financing by the SMEs. By providing guarantee to loans obtained by SMEs, CGC addresses one of the main constraints of SMEs that is, the lack of collateral.In its formative years, CGC's main aim was to assist the small enterprises particularly in agricultural, commercial and industrial sectors. As the Malaysian economy expanded and diversified over the years, the demand for CGC's guarantee services also grew in tandem. This has led CGC to expand its range of products and services to cater for larger credit facilities required by the medium-sized SMEs."Today, CGC's support for SMEs is not only confined to the provision of loan guarantee and financing facilities but also advisory services such as financial and business development, credit information and credit rating services in collaboration with SME Corp and Credit Bureau Malaysia Sdn Bhd. Through the Bureau, CGC helps SMEs to improve their creditworthiness and bankability to enable them to secure favourable financing and credit terms from the banks and other credit grantors on their own merit."In recent years, CGC have forged strategic alliances with fellow banking partners to offer innovative financing options and delivery channels that are cost-effective and efficient to enhance SMEs access to financing."To date, CGC has been instrumental in the establishment of more than 427,000 SMEs, guaranteeing close to RM56 billion."The current shareholders of CGC are Bank Negara Malaysia (Central Bank of Malaysia) and commercial banks licensed in Malaysia operating through a network of more than 2,600 branches nationwide."CGC has strived to fulfil its developmental role mandate the best possible way it could to ensure marginal but potentially viable SMEs continue to enjoy the financial lifeline not only to get into the business but be able to sustain and succeed.Stay up-to-date by following Daily Express’s Telegram channel.
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