i-VCAP is a shariah-compliant investment management services provider, primarily focused on managing Islamic ETFs
Kenanga acquires i-VCAP Management. (Credit: Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad.)
Kenanga Investment Bank, through its fully owned subsidiary Kenanga Investors, has acquired i-VCAP Management (i-VCAP), after securing regulatory approval.
i-VCAP is a shariah-compliant investment management services provider, primarily focused on Islamic exchange-traded funds (ETFs).
Incorporated on 25 October 2007, i-VCAP holds Capital Markets Services Licence (CMSL) issued by the Securities Commission Malaysia under the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007.
Kenanga Investment Bank group managing director Datuk Chay Wai Leong said: “We are constantly exploring ways to deliver new investment solutions for our clients.
“This is a natural step in our strategy to develop products for a wider audience. The ETFs market is one of the fastest-growing segments in asset management.
“A number of long-term macro trends, including the increasing use of passive vehicles and the driving force of digitalisation will lead to a growing demand for ETF products.
“The acquisition further expands our ability to build better, more diversified portfolios through our product capabilities across the Group, and enhances the range of solutions available. This addition strengthens our competitive edge in addressing client needs, which will further accelerate the growth of our business.”
The transaction represents the Malaysian financial services company’s second acquisition of an asset management business in the last 14 months, after the acquisition of Libra Invest in 2019.
Recently, the company has been actively participating in joint ventures, acquisition exercises along with strategic stakes within synergistic businesses.
Its activities are anticipated to complement several of its business lines with recent positive results in the group’s strong financial performance in 2020.
The company launched OneETF by Kenanga as Malaysia’s first KLCI-linked leveraged and inverse ETF, along with its partner Yuanta Securities, a large-scale ETFs provider in Taiwan.
KIB chief executive officer Ismitz Matthew De Alwis said: “i-VCAP’s ETFs business is highly complementary to OneETF by Kenanga as we foresee that it will broaden our geographical reach, product suite and investment expertise, enabling us to provide more solutions to help clients achieve their investment objectives.
“Simultaneously, KIB is set to leverage upon this opportunity to further build on its existing ETFs business with a higher degree of economic scale for a more diverse range of ETFs by working with its partners, regulators and other service providers to drive the ETFs and Islamic capital market.”
Kenanga Investors is the asset and wealth management arm of Kenanga Investment Bank, which provides investment solutions including collective investment schemes, portfolio management services, ETFs, financial planning and alternative investments.