Dato' Sri Khairussaleh Ramli, President and Group CEO of Maybank Group, is optimistic about Asean’s growth. “I always try to appreciate the three key elements that we are seeing in Asean. One is the size of that intra-Asean trade; secondly, the investment that comes into Asean. The third part is the population and the rising middle class. These are the three driving forces for why I believe Maybank is in a position to be able to grow with the region.”
The Edge Singapore caught up with Khairussaleh when he was in Singapore recently for a board meeting and to meet with Maybank’s investors, including GIC. In his view, connectivity is the key to Maybank’s future. “If we can position ourselves well to be able to progress with the region, I think we can do pretty well. Our approach is not just about making money. Maybank’s philosophy has always been about humanising financial services. We want to do good, and hopefully, do well,” adds Khairussaleh.
According to the Asia Global Institute, intra-Asean trade has shown strong resilience, rebounding by 7.03% in 2024 after a 13.3% decline in 2023, reflecting robust regional integration and economic recovery. “Compared to overall Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade, intra-Asean trade outpaced intra-RCEP trade in both 2021 and 2022.
“In 2022, intra-Asean trade grew twice as much as intra-RCEP trade, which highlights the strong integration of Asean. The contraction in 2023 affected both intra-Asean (–13.3%) and overall RCEP trade (–9.38%), but the recovery in 2024 was more pronounced for intra-Asean trade (7.03%), suggesting that Asean regional trade dynamics remain strong despite external challenges,” Asia Global Institute says.
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Just as intra-Asean trade bucked regional trends, foreign direct investment (FDI) into Asean bucked global trends. The UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), citing data from the World Investment Report, says: “Asean remained a hot spot for foreign capital. In 2024, FDI to the bloc was up 10% y-o-y at US$225 billion [$289 billion], powered by growth across Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.” Asean is in a bright spot, as the UNCTAD data shows world FDI fell by 11% to US$5 trillion in 2024.
These trends suit Maybank. “Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia present the biggest opportunities for us. Obviously, the Malaysian market is our biggest market. I always believe that we must be strong in our home market to be able to go out of the country,” says Khairussaleh.
The UNCTAD report shows that Singapore is the second largest recipient globally of FDI of US$143 billion in 2024, after the US (see Table 1). Singapore is also a source of FDI (see Table 2). No surprise then that Maybank’s focus on the city-state is rising, especially in the wake of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) MOU by the Singapore and Malaysian governments in January.
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Structurally, Maybank is a full-service bank comprising commercial banking, investment banking, insurance and takaful, and asset management. For commercial banking, in addition to Malaysia, where Maybank also owns Maybank Islamic Bank, the group has a Singapore subsidiary, Maybank Singapore, an Indonesian subsidiary, PT Maybank Indonesia, Maybank Philippines Incorporated and Maybank Cambodia.
The Investment Banking Group has a presence in six Asean markets, India, Hong Kong and London. The six Asean markets are Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam. Maybank also owns 69% of Etiqa, a life, takaful and general insurance company.
In terms of contribution to profit before tax, geographically, Malaysia is the highest, followed by Singapore with 22% in FY2024 (and 17.6% in 1QFY2025), Indonesia with around 3% and others.
“We identified Singapore and Indonesia as regional growth markets. Singapore is the regional financial centre, a hub for wealth, and domestically, the hub for many activities. We think that there’s still an opportunity to grow Singapore. Our footprint in Indonesia may be small, with the profit contribution around 3%. But given the size of the population, given the interconnectedness of Indonesia with this region and outside, we cannot ignore Indonesia,” says Khairussaleh.
Contributions from countries such as the Philippines, Vietnam and Thailand will be small compared to Malaysia, Singapore and Indonesia, he adds.
Johor, Singapore and Asean connectivity
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As ties between Malaysia and Singapore deepen due to the JS-SEZ, the completion of the Johor-Singapore Rapid Transit System Link (RTS), and market talk of a second RTS Link from Tuas, Malaysian companies and SMEs are heading to Singapore. For instance, popular Malaysian kopitiam chain Oriental Kopi in Bugis Junction and Nex are experiencing queues.
With Singapore malls “playing defence” to offset an exodus of Singaporeans and Singapore residents to Johor, more Malaysian brands may find their way to Singapore as Singapore’s landlords attempt to keep the population at home rather than heading across the Causeway, where prices are lower.
In an interview earlier this year, Ervin Yeo, chief strategy officer and CEO, commercial management, CapitaLand Investment, says Oriental Kopi is part of his defence strategy as the RTS and the broader JS-SEZ take shape.
Julie’s Biscuits, AirAsia, Resorts World and Nam Kee Pau are Malaysian brands popular with Singaporeans. On the corporate front, IOI Properties acquired the 50% of South Beach that it does not own from City Developments. Other Malaysian developers that have made their mark in Singapore are Sunway Group, Eco-World and YTL (which owns a major stake in Starhill Global REIT).
Most Malaysians and Malaysian SMEs creating a second wave of connectivity between the two nations as a result of the RTS would have a Maybank account. No surprise then that “corridor play” is a focus area for Maybank, in particular the JS-SEZ corridor.
“I am a true believer in the JS-SEZ. I see strong complementarity between the two. Johor has the land, the people, the utilities and the resources. Singapore is a financial centre, and many of the companies (and MNCs) have their headquarters in Singapore. There is a great opportunity here. It’s a win-win situation,” adds Khairussaleh.
With JS-SEZ being five times the size of Singapore, Maybank has 37 branches, three Maybank Premier Centres, nine Maybank Service Centres and six Commercial Banking Centres in Johor. The bank plans to set up a “phygital” branch at Forest City to offer personalised consultation virtually and provide banking services. In Singapore, Maybank has a long history of serving customers, with 18 branches and seven Maybank Premier Lounges, the highest amongst foreign banks.
In addition, Maybank has a JS-SEZ desk. In July, Maybank Singapore signed an MOU with the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) to strengthen cross-border business collaboration and drive investment in the region with a strategic focus on the JS-SEZ.
Since the JS-SEZ was launched, Maybank has disbursed RM8 billion ($2.42 billion) in financing for Singapore-based companies. These are not necessarily Singapore-owned. Some are from other parts of Asia and globally, investing in Johor. About half of the RM8 billion is earmarked for data centres.
“We also brought three Singapore companies to be showcased, with the intention to establish businesses in the JS-SEZ. One is in healthcare, one is in technology, and one is in logistics,” says Khairussaleh.
In May, Maybank announced it had facilitated the submission of letters of intent (LOI) by Alpine Renewables and Edible Oils, Centurion Corporation and Thomson Medical Group (TMG).
“Sectors such as manufacturing, logistics, digital economy, green economy, healthcare and also the halal economy are exciting. It’s about facilitating halal companies to set up manufacturing bases in your country. For example, in healthcare, where cosmetics are produced, they can be certified halal,” he adds.
The products to be certified as halal can be exported to countries that have this type of demand. “In our case, we don’t just provide Sharia Islamic financing, we are also facilitating these companies to get the halal certification. We want to be a one-stop shop in financial services,” says
Khairussaleh. “We bring these companies in through the Singapore relationship. We help them set up factories, we provide financing, and we even want to help them get the certification for halal from the authorities in Malaysia.”
Maybank’s Investment Banking entity provides advisory services to companies and projects, and connects them with clients and investors, with Maybank’s commercial arm providing balance sheet support where necessary.
The JS-SEZ has identified nine flagship zones: Johor Bahru City Centre, Iskandar Puteri, Tanjung Pelepas-Tanjung Bin, Pasir Gudang, Senai-Skudai, Sedenak, Forest City, Pengerang Integrated Petroleum Complex, and Desaru. These zones are designed to focus on specific economic activities and sectors, such as manufacturing, logistics, digital economy, tourism and energy.
Khairussaleh says it is natural to expand logistics and manufacturing facilities near seaports and airports, where land and resources are comparatively cheaper. “It’s not taking away what Singapore has. It’s about building on what Singapore already has in place,” he adds.
On fears of whether the JS-SEZ could go the way of Iskandar, Khairussaleh replies: “No, I think some investors came in maybe a bit early. But if you check the price of property now, the price of land has appreciated over the past 10 years. Then, it was a pure property play, but now it’s a value-added play.”
Bloomberg Intelligence sees the JS-SEZ as a positive impetus for the Malaysian banks. “Maybank and CIMB, Malaysia’s largest corporate lenders, could see a pickup in lending after system-wide business loans rose 4% y-o-y in June. Lower loan rates after the central bank’s surprise policy-rate pivot on July 9, and the potential for supply chains to shift to the region, with Malaysia’s negotiated 19% US reciprocal tariff, could spur more business lending. Government demand could also rise, with RM430 billion allocated for development spending by 2030. Working-capital loans, a fifth of the credit market, may recover as inflation eases. Maybank has 30% working-capital loans versus 25% at CIMB, 23% at RHB Bank and 11% at Public Bank.”
Digital versus physical
Khairussaleh sees broader corridors than the JS-SEZ in Malaysia-Singapore-Indonesia (recall Sijori) and Singapore-Asean. Indonesia is Maybank’s third-largest earnings contributor, with 350 branches. The full-service physical branches are in cities such as Jakarta and Medan. “If you want to serve the mass market, it has to be digital. We are also looking at reframing our branches. We do not need to be present everywhere in terms of branch presence. Wealth and SME are the kinds of activities in the branches.” As far as the omnipresence is concerned, it has to be digitalisation. Branches must be fit for purpose, he adds.
In Indonesia, Maybank’s strength is in serving SMEs. Even before Maybank acquired BII in 2008, “the strength of Maybank Indonesia has always been in SMEs, and especially among Chinese SMEs. We want to couple that with the wealth management business,” Khairussaleh says.
Having grown its wealth business in Singapore and Malaysia, some of that experience can be brought to bear in Indonesia, where Maybank can link the wealth proposition with SME owners’ needs. “We believe that there is an opportunity for us to focus on that particular segment for growth. In addition, we are looking at bringing our expertise in Islamic offerings to Indonesia.”
In Malaysia, almost 70% of Maybank’s financial assets are already Islamic. At the group level, Islamic assets are at around 44%. “We have the capabilities in Islamic finance. And how can we then overlay that proposition with the SME wealth proposition? When we did the analysis, especially on the corporate side, we believe that we still have a lot of opportunities, especially for inbound clients, meaning that clients from Malaysia, clients from Singapore, doing business in Indonesia,” Khairussaleh says. As far as growth for Indonesia is concerned, he believes the group has a lot of low-hanging fruit.
Key differences in interest rate policies
Maybank, which began in 1960 as Malayan Banking, also opened in Singapore that same year. It has therefore maintained a presence in Singapore since before DBS Group Holdings. The financial ties across the Causeway run deep. Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation has operated in Malaysia since the 1930s, and United Overseas Bank has been present there since 1952.
There are key differences in their economies which impact the Malaysian and Singapore banks’ net interest income. Because of the latter’s small open economy, the Singapore Dollar Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (S$NEER) is the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s chosen intermediate target for monetary policy and identifies the channels through which the exchange rate impacts prices in the economy. As Singapore’s monetary policy is centred on the exchange rate and its capital markets are open, domestic interest rates are largely determined by global interest rates and foreign exchange market expectations of the Singapore dollar. In effect, Singapore is a “price taker” for interest rates. This year, though, a flood of liquidity into the Singapore dollar caused Sora to fall from 3% on Jan 2 to below 1.8% as of Aug 11, dislodging the relationship between Sora and Sofr.
In Malaysia, Bank Negara sets interest rates. In July, BNM cut its overnight policy rate (OPR) for the first time in five years because of global trade uncertainties following the Trump tariffs, by 25 basis points (bps) to 2.75% from 3%.
Against this background, the Malaysian economy was a stabilising factor for Maybank’s financial performance in 1Q2025. Its net profit rose 4% y-o-y to RM2.59 billion on net operating income growth of 1.8% y-o-y to RM7.71 billion. By contrast, profit before tax for the Singapore business fell by 10.5% y-o-y but was almost unchanged q-o-q, up 0.6% to $179.39 million. Maybank reports 2Q and 1H2025 results on Aug 26.
Loan growth and net interest margins in Malaysia are often higher than in Singapore. Some analysts figure Malaysian banks could be in a sweet spot. “Loan growth at Malaysia’s biggest banks could gradually pick up, after June lending rose 5.1% on lower rates. Funding conditions could improve after the central bank pivoted to easing. Demand for fixed deposits has slowed after rising 2.8% in June versus 3.9% six months earlier, while deposits rose 2.9% in the same period. A steady loan-to-deposit ratio of 88.7% in June suggests banks have enough funding to support lending needs and any unexpected outflows,” Bloomberg Intelligence says. In a Bloomberg poll, Maybank has garnered 12 buys and seven holds from analysts.
Although Singapore’s low interest rates are a challenge, its hub status for airports to wealth and continued GDP growth continues to attract investment flows. On Aug 12, Singapore’s 2025 growth estimates were revised upwards to 1.5%-2.5% from 0%-2% by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, which is usually very conservative.
“If the country has ambition, we should mirror that ambition. Because if the country succeeds, then there is a good chance that Maybank will also succeed based on a similar strategy,” Khairussaleh says. That’s as good a reason as any to be rooted in Singapore.
