A trusted partner in Malaysia for 140 years

This year marks a milestone for HSBC in Malaysia as the bank celebrates 140 years of standing side-by-side with our Malaysian customers and communities. We are proud to have played a part in financing Malaysia’s development and are excited to contribute to the country’s ongoing evolution, fuelled by a new wave of investor interest.

Malaysia today is a regional powerhouse for commodities, semiconductor manufacturing and Islamic finance, and boasts a thriving digital economy.¹ Its international business appeal is underpinned by the country’s favourable investment environment. The Milken Institute’s Global Opportunities Index, which provides a global overview of countries’ attractiveness to investors,² ranks Malaysia number 1 amongst Asia’s emerging and developing nations.³

Approved investments in Malaysia hit a record RM329.5 billion (USD70.4 billion) in 2023, including foreign investments of RM188.4 billion and domestic investments of RM141.1 billion.⁴

Government strategies such as the Madani Economic Framework, the National Energy Transition Plan and the New Industrial Master Plan are also supporting the country’s long term growth and development.

A new era of transformation

This strong performance reflects the ongoing transformation of Malaysia’s economy as the country progresses to high-income status. While the country remains a critical regional production base and export hub for commodities like palm oil, oil and gas, refined petrochemical products, and rubber and timber, investors are increasingly drawn by the prospects of its more diversified, high-tech and green future.

Nearly two-thirds of approved investments in the first quarter of 2024⁵ flowed to the target sectors stipulated by the National Investment Aspirations (NIA) initiative: electrical and electronics, pharmaceuticals, digital economy, aerospace, and chemicals.⁶

Malaysia’s focus on higher quality, sustainable growth is creating opportunities across the country.

Semiconductor manufacturing and associated industries in the state of Penang are enjoying a boom of foreign investment.⁷ The state of Johor is fast becoming a regional data centre powerhouse, and has stepped up development of local infrastructure, including through the announcement of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone.⁸ In Sarawak, foreign investment continues to rise in areas such as the production of materials needed by solar industries.⁹ And in 2023 foreign direct investment into Kuala Lumpur more than tripled to RM8.7 billion, with 81% of new jobs coming from the digital and technology sectors.¹⁰

Malaysia’s digital economy – which accounts for almost a quarter of GDP¹¹ and is driven by near universal internet penetration across its population of over 33 million¹² – is growing fast, with consumer-facing offerings including e-commerce, digital financial services and online travel and media expected to continue expanding rapidly over the coming years, according to the e-Conomy SEA 2023 report published by Google, Temasek and Bain & Company.¹³

All this is underpinned by a strong focus on sustainable growth and a national commitment to transition to net zero carbon emissions by 2050.¹⁴ Investments in green projects, dominated by the development of renewable energy and green data centres, increased 326% in 2023 to over USD1 billion.¹⁵

HSBC, growing with Malaysia

HSBC has a long history of supporting Malaysia’s economic transformation. Our first Malaysian branch opened in 1884 in Penang, serving the tin trade. One hundred years later, HSBC became the first foreign bank to be locally incorporated in Malaysia. Today, we have 54 branches and more than 6,000 team members serving 940,000 customers in the country.

HSBC has also been offering Islamic financial services in Malaysia since 1994. In 2007, HSBC Bank Malaysia Berhad was the first locally incorporated foreign bank to be awarded an Islamic banking subsidiary licence in Malaysia, and HSBC Amanah Malaysia Berhad, an Islamic bank wholly owned by HSBC Bank Malaysia, commenced operations in August 2008.

Financing will remain critical to achieving the vision to make Malaysia’s economy more advanced, efficient, diversified, and sustainable. At HSBC, we are committed to leveraging our regional and global network, our banking products and our financing expertise to help these ambitious businesses capture the next level of growth.

The bank serves as a crucial link in the financial services sector, facilitating trade and investment between Malaysia and international markets. Our interests align with the country’s focus as a trading nation and an attractive destination for foreign investment.

Since the opening of our first office in Malaysia 140 years ago, we have grown with the country and gained indispensable insights into the changing market landscape.

With a proven track record of catering to the evolving needs of local and international customers, we are ready to help ambitious businesses pursue new opportunities in Malaysia’s next phase of transformative development.