The Breakfast Grille

The speed in which SVB and two regional banks collapsed in US and the subsequent demise of CS took markets by surprise. We speak to Thorsten Beck, Professor of Financial Stability, Florence School of Banking and Finance at the European University Institute as to the reasons for this, will there be a contagion effect on the banking system and what can regulators do to restore confidence.Image credit: ShutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite global inflation and supply chain troubles permeating 2022, A&W Malaysia recorded its best performance to date on the back of new store openings in East Malaysia. How sustainable is this bounce in revenue and what are the greenfield regions still open for expansion? We get updates from the Global CEO of A&W Restaurants, Kevin Bazner.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Euromonitor International estimates that the market size for beauty will grow to nearly USD$550 billion dollars in 2027, with much of that driven by the Asia Pacific. However, with so many new labels emerging in an intensely competitive market place, can long-standing brands like The Body Shop stay relevant amid fast moving trends and the digital age? We catch up with Datin Mina Cheah-Foong, Managing Director of InNature Berhad, the brand owner of The Body Shop in Malaysia, Cambodia and Vietnam for an update on the business.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Malaysia and Brazil have established their respective embassies for four decades already. Brazilian ambassador, H.E. Ary Norton de Murat Quintella shares with us the bilateral trade and investment ties between the two nations, and President Lula's stance in the Russia-Ukraine war.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

First invented by the Greeks in 5th Century BC, democracy has grown to be a very appealing form of government for many countries in the world. While the idea of democracy was different from present-day democracy, the core concept of a rule by the people with a system of which citizens have the power to participate in decision-making remains somewhat true. Author Dr Diego Fossati discusses the evolution of democracy and what it means in this region of the world on the Breakfast Grille.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The consortium comprising Boost and RHB Bank is one of 5 digital banks in Malaysia licenced by Bank Negara back in April 2022 and before 2023 ends, we should expect to see the result of this partnership. Sheyantha Abeykoon, Group CEO of Boost, returns to the Breakfast Grille to update us on the fintech player's path to profitability and the challenges of navigating this new, all online, playing field.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Japan and South Korea have long had a frenemy-type relationship as a result of historical grievances. Does the recent visit to Tokyo by President Yoon Suk Yeol herald a new age in their bilateral relations? We discuss the outcome of this landmark visit with Tokyo-based journalist William Pesek.Image credit: ShutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has made reforms the cornerstone of his government agenda, hence the Law and Institutional Reform portfolio under the Prime Minister’s Department takes on outsized importance in pursuing legislative change. But how much are political considerations holding back progress on reforms? We discuss the government's reform agenda with Ramkarpal Singh, Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Law and Institutional Reform).See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Faber-Castell is a 261-year-old stationery maker that has had a presence in Malaysia for more than 40 years, manufacturing erasers and ballpoint pens, among others. How did this company weather the pandemic when demand for such products was at its lowest with the closure of schools, colleges, universities and offices. Andrew Woon, the Managing Director of Faber-Castell Malaysia, Indochina and East Asia, talks to us about how the company is navigating new challenges in this digital age while becoming more sustainable.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Started in 1919, Chatham House is an independent policy institute headquartered in London. We discuss recent world developments with the director of Asia Pacific, Ben Bland, including the rise of China as a superpower and our understanding of authoritarian vs libertarian regimes.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Earthshot Prize, launched in 2019 by William, the Prince of Wales aims to catalyse solutions that can repair the planet and avert environmental disaster by awarding 50 million pounds to 50 solutions over the course of 10 years. Is this prize money a mere drop in the ocean - or can these ripples create a revolution in sustainability innovation? Hannah Jones, the CEO of the Earthshot Prize and former Chief Sustainability Officer of Nike discuss the evolving landscape of ESG and sustainability, as well as how much of an impact the Earthshot Prize can feasibly make.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KADIN) chairs the 2023 ASEAN Business Advisory Council. We speak to Arsjad Rasjid, the chairman on the potential of ASEAN. And as the president director of Indika Energy, how he managed a stark turnaround from losing millions of dollars to an increase in the company’s assets by about seven times within six years.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Sunzen Biotech started off specialising in animal health and in the past 25 years, it dabbled in CPO trading, traditional complementary medicine, human supplements and its latest venture - money lending. How does this Bursa Malaysia-listed firm find its niche or does it even need to. Executive director Ching Chee Pun talks about the challenges of navigating these businesses.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The global semiconductor sector is poised for a downturn this year, but the gloomy outlook hasn’t deterred the expansion plans of Oppstar Berhad, a front-end semiconductor player that will debut on the ACE Market on March 15th. Founder and CEO Ng Meng Thai joins me on the show today to discuss why he sees a bright future ahead for the business.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The venture capital landscape has had a boom in the past decade with a trajectory that is unlike any other. What's the story behind the successful firms that're seen as heroes of this tech century? Sebastian Mallaby explores this in his latest book, The Power Law. We speak to him to understand the history of tech incubation, in Silicon Valley and ultimately worldwide. We learn the unvarnished truth about some of the most iconic triumphs and infamous disasters in the VC landscape.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A Masters in Business Administration or MBA was once seen as the golden ticket to advancement in the corporate world. However with changing attitudes towards higher education and the financial squeeze of a global recession looming overhead, do MBAs still make economic sense? Prof. Ilian Mihov, Dean of INSEAD makes a case for continuing business education and how the famed institution shapes the next generation of corporate leaders.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In conjunction with International Women Day, we speak to one of the most powerful women in the government of the day, law minister Datuk Sri Azalina on her agenda and priorities in the government. She takes the hot seat to share her thoughts on her reform agenda, automatic citizenship for children born from Malaysian mothers overseas and other key issues.Image credit: https://www.facebook.com/ybaosSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Women make up 35% of the workforce in the Malaysian tech space, but are they equally empowered as their male counterparts to take on leadership roles? What kind of policies would encourage women's participation in the digital economy? Ahead of International Women's Day on 8 March, we discuss the reality and recommendations with our panel of guests.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

400%! That is how much the share price of TT Vision rallied by post its IPO on 18 January 2023. The stock has since given up some gains but is still up 264% from its IPO price of RM0.34 giving it a market capitalisation of RM590m. TT is involved in the manufacturing of machine vision equipment. We will speak to its CEO Goon Koon Yin on what has been driving the sharp share price gains and has it been a beneficiary of the US China trade diversion?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

At any given point in time, more than 210 million people in over 60 countries are wearing a Bata shoe. How did a Czech brand founded in 1894 end up in so many countries and still made us all think it is locally made? Vaibhav Manrao is Bata Malaysia's Managing Director and he shares his insights into how the shoemaker took the Covid-19 pandemic impact in its stride and its plans to power through.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Paramount Corporation Berhad is a property developer with established townships in Klang Valley, Kedah and Penang. It also ventured into co-working space, owns a hotel in Kuala Lumpur as well as a fine dining restaurant Dewakan, which was recently awarded a Michelin Star. On the education side, the divestment has paved the way for a 12 sen special dividend or a one-off yield of more than 10%. YTD, the stock has done well, up 16%. With all this mind, what sort of growth trajectory is Paramount on in the coming years? We speak to Jeffrey Chew, CEO of Paramount Corporation Berhad.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prime Minister Dato' Sri Anwar Ibrahim returned to the role he held two decades ago and tabled the largest budget in history this month with a RM388 billion price tag. Described by some as cautious and safe, does the budget pave the way for a return to the black for the country's financial accounts? Treasury Secretary General Datuk Johan Mahmood Merican discusses the thought process that went into drawing up the budget and future fiscal reforms on the table.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The United Kingdom is ranked 8th in the 2022 Monocle soft power survey no thanks to its strong currency of language and culture. Helped by the British Council which is known for its educational and cultural programs. However with a cut in spending, does this diminish their strategic goals and what plans do they have for the Malaysia after operating here for 75 years. We pose these questions to Scott McDonald, their CEO.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Finance Minister Dato' Seri Anwar Ibrahim tabled his maiden budget last week, three months after taking office. How well are the principles of Malaysia MADANI reflected in the country's fiscal plan? We assess the retabled Budget 2023 and what it says about the government's policy direction with our panel of experts Dr. Tricia Yeoh, CEO of IDEAS & Soh Lian Seng, Head of Tax from KPMG.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

For past few decades, we have been seeing the rise of the role of middlemen and as they hold tremendously strong market power, economists have attributed the rising cost of living to their platform. Kathryn Judge, Author of Direct: The Rise of the Middleman Economy and the Power of Going to the Source shares with us how the middleman economy impact the way we buy and sell and how we can fight back.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the lead up to the 100 days mark of the unity government, we sit down with Syerleena Abdul Rashid, MP for Bukit Bendera and Lee Chean Chung, MP for Petaling Jaya to discuss the challenges of the political landscape today. We also talk about their plans in government, accountability measures and working with former archenemies.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

LH Plus, one of the oldest plastics companies faced rising costs and supply chain constraints during the pandemic. We check in with Callum Chen, CEO of LH Plus Sdn Bhd as to their growth plans, is a listing on the cards and the importance of succession planning.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Retail spending is back with a vengeance, at least for now. This is evident in the traffic jam in the mall car parks, packed eateries and the long queues at even the Louis Vuitton outlet. However, is this sustainable especially in the face of slowing GDP growth this year and higher inflationary pressures. Competition is also heating up with new malls such as 118 Mall and TRX Mall. We speak to Dato' Philip Ho, CEO of Pavilion REIT on the return of China tourists, competition, its future injection pipeline and are REITs still relevant as an asset class.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kimlun Corporation Berhad is a contractor which has a niche in private sector projects but has been winning sizeable jobs in Sarawak. The differentiating factor with other contractors is its precast division where it had close to 60% market share for MRT 2. Earnings delivery has been improving but the share performance over the past year has been flat. Will it be a big beneficiary of MRT 3 when it is rolled out? We speak to Sim Tian Liang, CEO of Kimlun for insights.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tragedy struck Türkiye early last week as a magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck southern and central Türkiye which has seen over 35,000 deaths so far. It is one of the strongest earthquakes ever recorded in the Levant and the deadliest earthquake worldwide since the 2010 Haiti earthquake and was felt as far as Egypt, Israel, Palestine, Lebanon, Cyprus, and the Black Sea. Estimated to have caused over US$ 84 billion worth of damage, we speak to His Excellency Emir Salim Yüksel, Türkiye’s Ambassador to Malaysia to discuss the tragedy, how Malaysians can help and the future of Malaysia-Türkiye bilateral ties.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Feeling sick but don't want to visit a Doctor physically or want to schedule an appointment but can't get through the busy lines? Doctor Anywhere is a tech-enabled, omni-channel healthcare service provider in Asia, on a mission to make healthcare simple, accessible, and efficient for everyone. Since its launch in 2017, it has grown exponentially to serve more than 1.5 million users across Southeast Asia. It was ranked #3 of 100 in the fastest-growing companies in Singapore. We speak to Lim Wai Mun, founder and CEO of Doctor Anywhere.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Switzerland-based Barry Callebaut is the world's biggest chocolate producer making supplying 1,000 tonnes of chocolate a day to companies like Nestlé, Hershey's, Leonidas and Neuhaus. But chocolate's raw material is cocoa which is mainly sourced from countries like Côte d'Ivoire and Mali - places not well-known for their human rights record. Robert Kotuszewski, Managing Director of Barry Callebaut in Malaysia talks to us about walking that balance between ensuring the confection they produce is ethical, sustainable and profitable.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Karex Bhd, the world's largest condom maker suffered 2 years of consecutive losses but the worst appears to be over. We speak to Goh Miah Kiat, CEO of Karex as to what will be driving growth, was diversifying into gloves a mistake and whether is it too late to buy the shares after the recent rally?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In conjunction with World Radio Day, the founder of this station, BFM 89.9, Malek Ali shares with us how radio will survive the age of disruption for traditional media, Malaysia’s media landscape with the changing of governments and the editorial independence of the station. And how does a station like this make money? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Noraishah Mydin Abdul Aziz gained public prominence when she was fielded as the Pakatan Harapan candidate for Putrajaya in GE15, representing the disabled community. But the neurobiologist has been long known in scientific and medical circles through her work with the Malaysian Neural Tube Defects support group. To mark International Day of Women and Girls in Science on 11 February, we speak to Dr. Aishah on the challenges she's had to overcome sitting at the intersection of gender and disability in science, as well as her future prospects in politics.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Schaeffler Group started more than seven decades ago in Germany and is now a leading global automotive and industrial supplier. But the success of the industry hinges a great deal on the automotive market and the semiconductor industry. Both are expected to face more headwinds this year. Its presence in Malaysia dates back to 1995 where it caters more to the industrial division which supplies rolling bearing to many industries and it also has an office in Penang which caters to the semiconductor industry. We speak to Kelvin Chong, Country Manager of Malaysia for Schaeffler for insights.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As inflation pressure rises and economic activity slows, Malaysian banks will likely see weaker loans growth in 2023. Newly appointed CEO of Alliance Bank, Kellee Kam comes on the Breakfast Grille to share his strategies on how the bank plans to contend with the headwinds in the coming quarters.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

World Bank has forecast economic growth of 4% for Malaysia in 2023. Decent projections at first glance but what can be gleamed from their Economic Monitor Report? What are some of the policy recommendations that they have for this unity government to resolve our long standing economic issues? Dr Apurva Sanghi, World Bank’s lead economist for Malaysia answers those questions and more.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Boba craze might have died but Loob Holding, parent of Tea Live and Bask Bear Coffee has grown exponentially despite the pandemic. We ask their CEO and founder, Bryan Loo how was this achieved, maintaining brand relevance and is going public still on the cards?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trinidad Group began as a cigar distributor and retailer in 2002. Over the past two decades, the company expanded into hotel and F&B management as well as hospitality consulting. How are they positioning themselves amid the broad recovery in travel and tourism this year? We speak to Group President and CEO Dato’ Indera Naresh Mohan on their business strategy and expansion plans.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Analysts have described the Volvo Geely merger as one of the most successful in a decade. Volvo’s IPO in 2021 was seen as instrumental to help it realise its global goal of being fully electric by 2030. In Malaysia, Volvo Car Malaysia delivered a total of 3,194 vehicles last year, which represents a 43% increase from 2021. Two fully EVs have been launched which are the XC40 and C40 recharge and sales have been strong so far. We speak to Charles Frump, Managing Director of Volvo Car Malaysia for more insights.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Prior to GE15, Khairy Jamaluddin boldly stated his ambitions to become the Prime Minister of Malaysia, before his unceremonious sacking from UMNO last week. Will he become a cautionary tale, akin to Icarus flying too close to the sun or is this merely a long opening gambit in the chess game of politics? We hear from Khairy Jamaluddin himself on what happened and his political prospects for the future.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We speak to Dr. Rezal Khairi bin Ahmad CEO of NanoMalaysia Berhad on how this agency has been working towards energizing industries through the commercialization of nanotechnology as we reflect on the progress the past decade and understand their priorities particularly in the ESG space.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Despite the Malaysia Education Blueprint 2013-2025 providing the roadmap for education transformation, the quality of public education has suffered a decline due to various factors. What reforms are urgently needed to put public education back on track? We speak to Shahnaz Al-Sadat of LeapEd Services for reflections to mark International Day of Education.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The past two years have been cruel for the China Tech companies and while most of the spotlight was focused on Jack Ma and Ali Baba, there was another behemoth that for many epitomizes perhaps the best and worst of this industry. We speak to Lulu Yilun Chen, an editor at Bloomberg and author of Influence Empire which highlights the story of Tencent and China’s Tech ambitions.Image credit: ShutterstockSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We take time to reflect on the position and role of the Chinese in Malaysian society, business and politics with Ngan Teng Ye, President of The KL & Selangor Chinese Assembly Hall which focuses on ensuring the voices within the Chinese community are heard while fighting for the benefits and rights of the community since 1923.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Semiconductor industry is worth USD 580 billion dollars and has become a key part of the trade war between China and the US. Can Malaysia benefit from this? Do we have the right policies in place? Questions we ask Dato' Seri Wong Siew Hai, President of Malaysia Semiconductor Industry Association and John Neuffer, CEO & President of Semiconductor Industry Association.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

After nearly three years of pandemic-impacted operations, the Oriental Group of Restaurants has finally returned to the black with revenues almost back to pre-MCO days. What fortunes will this Year of the Rabbit bring to this leader of Cantonese cuisine in the Klang Valley? Its founder and chairman Datuk Seri Philip Siew talks about the challenges the company had faced, the lessons learned and how to apply them going forward.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In 2022 Malaysia saw the launch of Malaysia’s new low-cost carrier, MYAirline. From 3 destinations in December last year, the carrier aims to expand its fleet size to 50 in five years. CEO, Rayner Teo shares with us their path to profitability and how they are differentiating themselves from the other low cost carriers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

2022 was a disastrous year for many asset classes driven by an aggressive interest rate cycle by the Fed and also the Russia Ukraine war. Mark Mobius who is known as “the Godfather of Emerging Markets” will be looking into his crystal ball and giving his insights on many asset classes - stocks, bonds, cryptos, property and what is the right investment strategy to take. Prior to launching Mobius Capital Partners in 2018, Mark served as executive chairman of Franklin Templeton Investments’ emerging markets group.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.