Roles and Functions of the Board of Directors and Investment Committee:
The Board of Directors of the Manager is responsible for overseeing the activities of the Manager. The Investment Committee is responsible for formulating, implementing and monitoring the investment management policies of the Funds in accordance with its objectives and the provisions of the respective Deed. Board and Investment Committee meetings are held every three months.
Remuneration Policy For Directors And Senior Management
The Company has remuneration policies in place for its directors and senior management that take into account the demands, complexities and performance of the company, as well as skills and experience required.
Y.M. Dato’ Tunku Ahmad Zahir bin Tunku Ibrahim
Non-Executive and Independent Director/Chairman
Y.M. Dato' Tunku has been a Director of the Company since 21 February 1997. After graduation in 1987, he joined KAF Astley & Pearce Sdn. Bhd. as a broker. In 1994, he joined PYEMAS Sdn. Bhd. as a Senior Manager until 1995 when he led a management buyout exercise of the company. He has significant experience in the trading of money market instruments such as MGS, Treasury bills, SWAP, IRS, Private Debts Securities (PDS), Cagamas Notes & Bonds and interbank money market. Y.M. Dato' Tunku is the Executive Chairman of First TAZ Capital Sdn. Bhd., Chairman of First TAZ Tradition Sdn. Bhd. and sits on the board of several private companies. He is active in the development of several property projects. Dato' Tunku holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Carlton University in Ottawa, Canada.
Clement Chew Kuan Hock
Chief Executive Officer
Clement has been the CEO of Astute Fund Management Berhad since 2015. Clement worked for J.P. Morgan for 19+ years and Merrill Lynch for 4+ years. He was Senior Country Officer of J.P. Morgan in Malaysia between 2007 and 2010. Clement also held the positions of Chairman/Executive Director of J.P. Morgan Securities Malaysia Sdn Bhd (2005 to 2014), Director of J.P. Morgan Chase Bank Bhd (2008 to 2010) and head of Malaysia equity product (1998 to 2005). In 2005, he was voted No. 1 Malaysia equity sales person by Asiamoney. Clement started his investment career as an equity analyst for Merrill Lynch in 1991 before moving to New York to cover Asia ex-Japan sales for Merrill Lynch and J.P. Morgan (1993 to 1998). Prior to joining the securities industry, he worked for property developer IGB Corporation where his last position was corporate affairs manager. Clement holds a MSc in Management Science from Imperial College London and a bachelor of economics (upper second honours) from La Trobe University in Melbourne. He is a CMSRL holder for Fund Management (eCMSRL/B6806/2016) and a member of Federation of Investment Managers Malaysia (FIMM). In 2018, Clement was appointed to the Board of Lembaga Totalisator Malaysia, a statutory entity under the Ministry of Finance (MoF). He was awarded the Pingat Mahkota Perlis (PMP) by DYTM Raja of Perlis, Tuanku Syed Sirajuddin in 2009.
Wong Fay Lee
Non-Independent and Non-Executive Director
Wong Fay Lee is an Executive Director of MBMR and has been the Group General Counsel to MBM Resources Bhd. (MBMR) since 2011. She started her career in the corporate commercial and corporate finance practice of Mallesons Stephens Jaques in Sydney and later joined Mallesons practice in Singapore. Her former positions include Manager in the Research & Development Division (responsible for bond and derivatives markets) with the Malaysian Securities Commission, Chief Executive/Managing Director of Malaysia Derivatives Clearing House (now Bursa Malaysia Derivatives Berhad) and Adviser to the Clearing Division of the Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited. She was an Independent Director of KFH Asset Management Sdn. Bhd. from 2008 to 2014. She has a Bachelor's degree in Law from the University of Sydney and a Graduate Diploma in Applied Finance and Investments from the Securities Institute of Australia. She was admitted as a Solicitor to the NSW Supreme Court and the High Court of Malaya.
Azran bin Osman Rani
Non-Executive and Independent Director
Azran is currently the CEO of iflix Malaysia - an internet technology company delivering video-on-demand services across Southeast Asia and emerging markets. He was the former CEO of AirAsia X. He led the start-up team that developed the business plan, raised capital, secured relevant licenses and approvals, acquired aircraft and launched the airline's inaugural flight to the Gold Coast in 2007. Before joining Air Asia X, Azran was the Senior Director of Business Development of Astro and Senior VP, Special Projects of Bursa Malaysia Berhad. He was also an Associate Partner of McKinsey & Company. Azran started his management consultancy career with Booz Allen & Hamilton where his last position was a Lead Consultant in 2000. He graduated from Stanford University with a Master degree in Management Science & Engineering and a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. Azran is a Fellow of CPA Australia. He is a Non-Executive Commissioner of PT XL Axiata Tbk.
Asgari bin Mohd Fuad Stephens
Non-Independent and Non-Executive Director
Asgari is a Malaysian originally from Sabah now residing in Kuala Lumpur. Asgari holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) from University of Melbourne, Australia and a Master of Business Administration degree from Cranfield University, UK. He has extensive experience in both public and private equity investing in Malaysia. He is the co-founder of Kumpulan Sentiasa Cemerlang Sdn Bhd (“KSC”), an investment advisory and fund management group. He started two venture capital firms, iSpring Venture Management Sdn Bhd and Intelligent Capital Sdn Bhd while continuing to work with KSC. He was previously the Chairman of the Malaysian Venture Capital Association. Prior to starting his own company in 1996 he worked at Usaha Tegas Sdn Berhad establishing their fund investment division between 1988-1990 and 1992-1995. In 1990-1992 he worked as an associate director at a stock broking firm.In the years 1982-1988 he worked for a small family company in Sabah which was involved with Oil Palm plantations and property investments.Asgari is a director of Innoprise Plantations Berhad. He has never been convicted of any offences (other than traffic offences, if any) within the past 5 years and has not been imposed of any public sanction or penalty by the relevant regulatory bodies during the financial years.
The qualifications and experience of the key management staff are as follows:
Clement Chew Kuan Hock
Chief Executive Officer
Clement Chew joined the Company in December 2014. He worked for J.P. Morgan for 19 years and Merrill Lynch for 4 years. At J.P. Morgan, he was Chairman/Executive Director of J.P. Morgan Securities Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. (2005 to 2014), Senior Country Officer for Malaysia (2007 to 2010), Non-independent director of J.P. Morgan Chase Bank Bhd. (2008 to 2010) and Head of Malaysia Equity Product (1998 to 2005). He started his career as an equities analyst at Merrill Lynch in 1991 before being transferred to New York in 1993 to cover Asia ex-Japan sales. Prior to joining the finance industry, Clement worked for IGB Corporation where his last position was Corporate Affairs Manager. He holds a MSc in Management Science from Imperial College in London and a Bachelor of Economics (Upper Second Honours) from La Trobe University in Melbourne.
Nancy Rioh
Head of Compliance and Risk Management
Nancy Rioh is the designated person responsible for Compliance and Risk Management matters for Astute Fund Management Berhad (“AFMB”). Nancy Rioh has a Master`s in Business Administration major in International Business from University of Greenwich, UK, and a Bachelor Degree in Business Administration from the University of Abertay Dundee, UK. She also an Advanced Diploma holder from Association of Business Executive (ABE,UK), as well as a Diploma holder in Information Technology from SAL Group of Colleges, Malaysia. Prior to join AFMB, she was a registered Compliance and Risk Management Manager at Pheim Asset Management SdnBhd and Pheim Unit Trusts Bhd for five years. She also has nearly seven years` experience in the stock broking industry, having worked in both the Settlements and the Credit Control Departments at Hong Leong Investment Bank where she attained the position of Manager.
Roles and Responsibilities:
Astute Fund Management Berhad’s fund managers are authorised to manage the Funds in accordance with the Funds’ stated investment objective. This authority is subject to the requirements of this Master Prospectus, the respective Deeds, Guidelines and relevant laws, acceptable and efficacious business practice within the unit trust industry, the policies and internal controls in place of the Management Company. The fund managers will report to the investment committee of the Fund and will implement the investment strategies selected by this committee.
Kevin Chan
Head of Fixed Income Investments
Kevin has over 17 years of experience in fixed income investments specializing in the domestic fixed income market. He started his career with KAF Investment Bank in 1997 as an analyst and later as a fixed income dealer where he focused on trading propriety fixed-income securities with emphasis on corporate bonds as well as assisting the sales and distribution team with pricing and distribution of primary issuances originated by the bank. In 1999, he joined Intrinsic Capital Management as a fixed income fund manager and was appointed as Executive Director of the firm from 2005 to 2009. He was responsible for the investment strategy and performance of the entire fixed income portfolio across both institutional and private client accounts covering a broad spectrum of the fixed-income market.
He is a licensed fund manager and holds a Masters in Business Administration degree from SCU, Australia.
Note: Christopher Chan (Head of Fund Management) has resigned from the Company on 30 April 2024, as such, his profile was removed in entirety.
The role of a Shariah committee is to:
The Shariah committee meetings are held formally twice in a year, or more frequently if required to review on the Fund’s asset.
The number of funds in which it acts as adviser: 5 (as at 30 April 2018)
Dr. Mohamad Sabri bin Haron
Chairman and Independent Member
Dr. Mohamad Sabri bin Haron is a lecturer at the Pusat Citra Universiti, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. He is also an Associate Senior Fellow at Institute of Malaysian and International Studies (IKMAS). He obtained a Diploma in Islamic Studies from Kolej Sultan Zainal Abidin in 1985 and Bachelor of Islamic Studies (al-Quran and al-Sunnah) from National University of Malaysia in 1988. He completed his Master of Comparative Law at International Islamic University of Malaysia in 1993. He succeeded in obtaining his Ph.D. in Islamic Law (Fiqh and Usul Fiqh) in 1998 from University of Jordan. His specialisation areas are in Islamic Economics and Islamic Civilisation. He also was seconded to the Securities Commission as the Senior Manager in Islamic Capital market starting from 1 June 2009 until 31 May 2010.
Dr. Ab. Halim bin Muhammad
Independent Member
Dr. Ab Halim bin Muhammad graduated in 1972 with a Bachelor's Degree of Shari'ah from Al-Azhar University, Cairo, Egypt and completed his studies in Ph. D. of Shari'ah at St. Andrew, Scotland University in 1977. He served as a lecturer and became the Head of Department of Quran & Sunnah, Faculty of Islamic Studies Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Some of the subjects that he taught were Islamic Jurisprudence (Muamalat, Islamic Banking & Islamic Finance and Takaful), Principles of Islamic Jurisprudence and Islamic Criminal Laws. However, he has retired as a lecturer now. He used to be the first Chairman of Shariah Committee of BMMB prior to joining National Shariah Advisory Council of Bank Negara Malaysia in 2004. He was also a member of Shariah Committee of Securities Commission. He has been re-appointed as a member of the Bank's Shariah Committee since 30 November 2009.
Mohd Fadhly bin Md. Yusoff
Independent Member
Encik Mohd Fadhly Md. Yusoff (Encik Mohd Fadhly) has more than 13 years of experience in Islamic Capital Market during his tenure as manager with Islamic capital market department of Securities Commission Malaysia from 1995 to 2008. During this period, he was involved in Shariah compliance supervision in relation to submissions for the issuances of sukuk, structured products, collective investment schemes and Islamic REITs. In addition, he has also undertaken in-depth research for the development of new Islamic capital market instruments as well as providing technical inputs for the preparation of various guidelines issued by Securities Commission Malaysia. Currently, Encik Mohd Fadhly also serves as a member of Shariah committee of RHB Islamic Bank Berhad, Bank Pembangunan Malaysia Berhad, Sun Life Malaysia Takaful Bhd and Opus Asset Management Sdn Bhd. He has actively participated in various industry development initiatives namely the International Organization of Securities Commission (IOSCO) Task Force on Islamic Capital Market, Islamic Financial Services Board's (IFSB) Governance of Islamic Investment Funds Working Group, technical member for the publication of Resolutions of the Securities Commission Shariah Advisory Council and Islamic capital market educational and/or promotional programmes. He obtained his Bachelor of Shariah (1st Class Honours) from University of Malaya, Malaysia in 1995.
Corporate Information
Maybank Trustees Berhad (5004-P) is the Trustee of the Fund with its registered office at 8th Floor, Menara Maybank, 100 Jalan Tun Perak, 50050 Kuala Lumpur.
Maybank Trustees Berhad (“MTB”) was incorporated on 12 April 1963 and registered as a Trust Company under the Trust Companies Act 1949 on 11 November 1963. It was one of the first local trust companies to provide trustee services with the objective of meeting the financial needs of both individual and corporate clients.
Experience in Trustee Business
Maybank Trustees Berhad has acquired experience in the administration of unit trust funds/ schemes since 1991.
Corporate Information
CIMB Commerce Trustee Berhad was incorporated on 25 August 1994 and registered as a trust company under the Trust Companies Act, 1949 and having its registered office at Level 13, Menara CIMB, Jalan Stesen Sentral 2, Kuala Lumpur Sentral, 50470 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The Trustee is qualified to act as a trustee for collective investment schemes approved under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007.
Experience as Trustee to Unit Trust Funds
CIMB Commerce Trustee Berhad has been involved in unit trust industry as trustee since 1996. It acts as Trustee to various unit trust funds, real estate investment trust fund, wholesale funds and private retirement schemes.
Astute Fund Management Berhad (“AFMB”) is committed to Compliance with the highest standards of ethics and integrity in all its business operations and expects that all its employees, officers and directors will comply with the word and spirit of every applicable law or regulation in the countries and localities in which we operate. AFMB has a comprehensive Compliance Unit which has established robust Compliance program and designed to ensure that its employees are aware of and adhere to applicable laws and ethical standards.
Statement on Code of Ethics and Conduct
We are committed to a high standard of integrity, fairness, ethical behaviour and excellence in our business dealings.
At the core of our value system is the belief that our clients are the bedrock of our business. Serving their needs effectively lies in the heart of everything that we do.
We believe that trust must be earned. This is fundamental to all lasting and successful partnerships. There is a requirement for us to know our clients well in order to meet their changing needs and objectives.
The principles and ethical standards which govern our conduct are contained in the Company’s Code of Ethics & Conduct for Employees (“Code of Ethics”).
The Code was developed with the following objectives in mind:
The Company takes compliance and risk seriously. Our employees are encouraged to stay abreast with the changing requirements under the industry’s laws and regulations. In addition, they are required to adhere to our internal policies and procedures. Incidents of non-compliance by our staff are met with appropriate penalties including dismissal for serious breaches or misconduct.
Employees are also required to confirm their adherence to the Code of Ethics on an annual basis.
Please email enquiry@astutefm.com.my should you require more information on our Code of Ethics & Conduct.
Please Find Contact Details:
Tel: (603) 2095 9999
Email: aisb.comp@astutefm.com.my
Astute Fund Management Berhad outsourced its Internal Audit function to Total International Associates (“TIA”), an independent professional firm in order to provide the Audit Committee and Board of Directors with adequate assurance by leveraging on specialist expertise not available internally. We believe that TIA, will be able to bring a systematic and disciplined approach in evaluating and improving the effectivess of the Company’s internal risk management, control and governance processes.
Established in 2004, Total International Associates (TIA) is a boutique firm approved by Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) to carry out our duties which specializing in assurance and providing business solutions that are customised to meet our client’s financial needs.
Total International Associates takes a holistic approach towards risk and controls management with a view to offer comprehensive solutions, taking into account the dynamics of the business environment.
Members of the team come from diverse backgrounds, thus offering new insights to ensure efficient and effective solutions. We have members on the team who are very experienced in the areas of corporate governance, enterprise risk management, and internal controls framework, and have undertaken many assignments in Public Listed Companies.
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