MBSB wants to further tap east coast states

Tuesday January 19, 2010
MBSB wants to further tap east coast states
By ZAZALI MUSA

JOHOR BARU: Malaysia Building Society Bhd (MBSB) wants a deeper market penetration in the east cost states where demand for financial products is still largely untapped.

Chief executive officer Ahmad Zaini Othman said the company would focus on two main segments – personal financing and disbursement of loans to owners of Malay reserve land.

He said unlike in the west coast states, property development activities in Pahang, Kelantan and Terengganu were moving at a rather slower pace.

“These two segments in the three east coast states offer good growth prospects for us, especially for Islamic financing products,’’ Ahmad Zaini said recently.


From left: MBSB regional business representantive (southern region) Abdul Halim Zainal, Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali and Ahmad Zaini Othman at the opening of the sales and service centre.

He was speaking at the opening of the MBSB Tebrau sales and service centre at Taman Mount Austin near here by company chairman Tan Sri Abdul Halim Ali.

The centre was relocated from Pasir Gudang where MBSB’s Masai outlet was opened in 2000. MBSB presently has 32 sales and service centres nationwide.

Ahmad Zaini said most of the Malay reserve land remained undeveloped as financial institutions were not keen to provide loans to the land owners due to the status of their land.

“We are willing to offer financial assistance to the land owners or we could look at jointly developing the land with them,’’ he added.

Ahmad Zaini said MBSB owned several pieces of land in the country with an estimated current market value of RM300mil and had no immediate plan to dispose of or develop them.

He said the company also planned to open a regional business representative office in the East Coast Economic Region (ECER) to better serve its customers and attract new ones.

It presently has four sales and service centres in the ECER – in Kuantan, Kemaman, Kuala Terengganu and Kota Baru.

Ahmad Zaini said the company would be targeting more civil servants as its potential customers and planned to introduce more products tailored to their financial capabilities.

“There are over 1.5 million civil servants in the country and the figure offers good growth potential for our personal finance business,’’ he said.

The personal finance division currently contributes about 30% of MBSB’s total business while the balance 70% comes from home mortgages.

- The Star -