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Howden has acquired an undisclosed stake in Malene Insurance Brokers, a Malaysian independent niche broker in the energy and power sector, and a takaful specialist.
According to a statement by Howden, Malene will join its other Malaysian business, CIMB Howden Insurance Brokers, under one common locally incorporated holding company known as HBG Malaysia.
This follows HBG Malaysia’s recent agreement to purchase the remaining 51% of shares in CIMB Howden that were held by CIMB Group Holdings. Howden stated that this further reinforces its commitment in the strategically important market of Malaysia.
Furthermore, both CIMB Howden and Malene will rebrand under Howden, with the former being renamed as Howden Insurance Brokers, and the latter as Howden Takaful Brokers. Together, they will be the second largest broker multinational broker in Malaysia, the statement said.
Following the transactions, Jeffrey Chan will remain as CEO of Howden Insurance Brokers, while Ismam Shahrin Ismail, will step up from his role as general manager of Malene to become CEO of Howden Takaful Brokers (subject to regulatory approval). Tunku Abang Faisal Amir will be chairman of Howden Insurance Brokers Sdn. Bhd. and on the board of both Howden Takaful Brokers. and HBG Malaysia. Eddy Hon will continue as country manager for Howden Malaysia and join the board of Howden Insurance Brokers and HBG Malaysia.
The moves are part of Howden’s increased activity in the Southeast Asian region, including the recent merger of Howden and Maxi in Thailand to form Howden Maxi.
“The past nine months have been transformational for Howden Asia. Howden’s growth strategy has always been focused on becoming leaders in the specialist lines and markets that we choose to operate in,” said Goh Chye Huat, CEO of Howden Asia. “By bringing IPG, Malene and Maxi into the Group, we are now able to offer clients, across Asia and beyond, leading high net worth life solutions, we have increased our global Islamic finance capabilities, and we are the leading motor broker in Thailand.
“With these two announcements, we have doubled the size of our operations in Thailand, become the second largest multinational broker in Malaysia and have expanded the reach of the Howden brand to new audiences,” Goh added.
