Malaysia: Ekuinas Posts Strong Performance in Fiscal 2017

(L to R) Ekuinas Chairman Raja Tan Sri Dato' Seri Arshad Raja Tun Uda and CEO Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir Unveiling Ekuinas' 2017 Annual Report

Ekuiti Nasional Berhad (Ekuinas) today announced the results of its financial year ended 31 December 2017 (FY2017), maintaining its eighth consecutive year of performance.

Last year features several key milestones for Ekuinas, specifically the closure of its maiden fund, Ekuinas Direct (Tranche I) Fund (otherwise known as Fund I) and the realisation of its assets.

Fund I recorded a Gross Portfolio Return of RM476.7 million, translating to annualised gross Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 10.1 per cent and net IRR of 6.5 per cent.

Ekuinas’ maiden fund has outperformed both public and private equity (PE) asset classes based on the benchmarking methods by Centre of Asia Private Equity Research Ltd (CAPER), a Hong Kong-based independent, leading body specialising in the Asian PE industry.

Meanwhile, Ekuinas Direct (Tranche II) Fund or Fund II, recorded a Gross Portfolio Return RM391.7 million, achieving annualised gross IRR and net IRR of 14.6 per cent and 10.2 per cent, respectively.

At the same time, the Ekuinas Direct (Tranche III) Fund or Fund III recorded Gross Portfolio Return of RM53.9 million with an annualised gross IRR of 10.7 per cent.

Amongst the other highlights is the increase in the number of direct and outsourced investments from a total of 53 in FY2016 to 58 in FY2017 and a total committed investment of RM3.6 billion compared to RM3.0 billion in 2016.

Apart from the funds performances, Ekuinas has also generated a positive impact on the broader Malaysian economy, which facilitated a total economic deployment of RM4.3 billion together with private sector partners.

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Given the diversity of investment sectors, the financial performance of Ekuinas’ portfolio companies were mixed, with companies such as Al-Ikhsan Sports and Orkim Sdn Bhd having registered strong performances for the year, while companies within the Oil and Gas (O&G) as well as food and beverage (F&B) sectors showed weaker performance due to the market forces amid the challenging landscape.

However, Ekuinas is confident with the recovery of these industries and will continue to support as well as build these businesses to become robust and demonstrate growth.

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