KFH shelves plan to bid RHBCap stake

KUWAIT Finance House (Malaysia) Bhd (KFHM) will temporarily shelve plans to acquire a stake in local lender RHB Capital Bhd to concentrate on its organic expansion strategy in Malaysia."We are not looking at any acquisition exercise at the moment. Our focus right now is on (achieving) organic growth (in profit and revenue) where we aim to increase the number of our branches in Malaysia," said managing director K. Salman Younis.He was speaking to reporters after the opening of KFHM's second branch by Kuwait Finance Minister Bader Mishari Al-Humaithi in Shah Alam yesterday.Salman said KFHM is still interested to acquire a stake in RHB Capital."We are always keen on opportunities to expand our franchise. However, until today, we have not received any formal invitation to discuss the matter," he added.For 2007, KFHM aims to open at least five new branches in the Klang Valley and other major cities such as Penang and Johor.Within the next four years, it plans to have between 40 and 50 branches nationwide.In line with its expansion plan, Salman said KFHM targets to introduce, on a large scale, financing facilities for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) by this year."As a universal bank, we do not discriminate by going solely for big corporate clients. We are always interested to help take small businesses to other levels of development," he said.He believes that SMEs are vital to the economy. In most developed countries, their contribution account for between 85 per cent and 95 per cent of total economy."There is indeed huge potential in the SME sector. We expect to see strong growth in this segment," he added.Meanwhile, Bader Mishari hopes KFHM will promote greater bilateral cooperation in economic activities as well as in the Islamic financial market."It is my hope that KFH will continue to play a major role and (take the) initiative to further develop Islamic banking in the region and the Middle East," he said.The presence of KFH, an Islamic bank from the Middle East, provides alternative banking to consumers via-a-vis conventional banking for the benefit of the company as well as consumers in Malaysia through its innovative products and services, he added.