PNB's Total Funds At RM130 Billion

KUALA LUMPUR, April 4 (Bernama) The funds of Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB), which celebrated its 30th anniversary Friday, currently stands at a total of RM130 billion comprising shareholders funds and proprietary funds.The figure represents about 14 percent of the stock market capitalisation, its Chairman, Tan Sri Ahmad Sarji Abdul Hamid said.With such funds, PNB has been able to hold equities in 313 companies,with 256 of them being listed companies and encompassing various strategic sectors such as plantations, banking, real estate, oil and gas, energy, port and others."In the last 30 years PNB has carried out the efforts to fulfill the duty entrusted to it by Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputera (Bumiputera Investment Foundation) which was to increase the wealth of Bumiputeras, raise the ownership of Bumiputeras in the country's main economic sectors and enhancing the value of its unit trust shares," he said at a dinner given in conjunction with its anniversary celebration here Friday.Also present at the event were Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, Datin Seri Jeanna Abdullah, Deputy Prime Minister, Datuk Seri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak, Datin Sri Rosmah Mansor, and the president and chief executive of PNB Group, Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman and his wife Puan Sri Rohani Mohamad.Todate, PNB has distributed a total of RM60.4 billion in dividends and bonus to 8.845 million holders of its nine unit trust funds.The share units that they hold amount to 76 billion, which is about 35 percent of the total industry figure, Ahmad Sarji said."PNB wishes to express its deepest appreciation to all its investors including the 748,303 non Bumiputera unitholders who now hold a total of 10 billion share units."Under the leadership of Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi as the chairman of Yayasan Pelaburan Bumiputera, PNB, he has taken the efforts to ensure that the institution would continue to have the trust of both its Bumiputera and non Bumiputera investors," he said.PNB has also moved into the global level through strategic partnerships with world reknown companies, besides opening up global fund management offices in Singapore and London.It also plans to soon open an office in Tokyo, Japan, he said.Hopefully, these efforts will bring higher returns to the investors especially the lower income earners who make up 7.6 million or the majority 86.12 percent of PNB unit trust funds holders with investments of below 10,000 share units, he said.