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  • ☕️ Discount store operator Eco-Shop files for RM800 mil IPO

☕️ Discount store operator Eco-Shop files for RM800 mil IPO

FashionValet founders charged in court over RM8 mil CBT. CEO of a USD560+ bil healthcare company shot dead at point blank in public. An unknown disease with flu-like symptoms in DR of Congo killed 143 people.

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

Information as of 0720 UTC+8 on Dec 6, 2024.

US Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell said in a speech that the US economy is in remarkably good shape, driving the S&P 500 to its 56th closing record in 2024.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin hit USD100,000 (RM442,000) for the first time. USD1 mil in the works. People laugh, and scoff at such a prediction, the same thing many did about USD100k. Anyways, everyone is a Bitcoiner at the price they deserve.

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Love knows no age91 years old was the age of the oldest groom in Malaysia in 2023, while the oldest bride was 86 years old, according to the Statistics Department. In addition, 0.1% of grooms aged 65 and over married brides aged 24 and below. Inter-ethnic marriages also saw a significant rise, with 28% more such marriages in 2023 compared to 2022, increasing from 14,028 to 17,956. Muhibbah!

5,700 casualties were reported worldwide in 2023 due to landmines and explosive remnants of war, according to the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor group. The highest number of casualties was recorded in Myanmar, with significant tolls also in Syria, Afghanistan, and Ukraine. Of the total, at least 1,983 people were killed and 3,663 injured across 53 countries, with civilians making up 84% of the victims, and 37% of those were children.
Read: Landmine Monitor 2024

4,000 years ago, a network of earthen canals was built in what is now Belize, discovered using drones and Google Earth imagery. These ancient canals, paired with holding ponds, were used to channel and catch freshwater species like catfish. The discovery, published in Science Advances, also found barbed spearpoints that may have been used to spear fish. The canals were constructed by semi-nomadic people in the Yucatán coastal plain and were used for about 1,000 years, even during the formative period of the Maya civilization.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

The never-ending insurance-gate
Before we start, we want to provide context on the whole insurance situation in Malaysia. While our country aims to be a high-income state before the end of this decade, the insurance penetration rate in Malaysia is low, at only 54%, below the global average of 68%. Jangan talk about Singapore lah, we are so behind them as their insurance penetration rate is at 250% - where on average, each person has at least 2.5 insurance policies. So, by using common sense, the domestic insurance industry should focus on increasing the penetration rate and not deepen their pockets by jacking up premiums like nobody's business.

In a new development of the insurance-gate, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) mandated the insurance industry via the Life Insurance Association of Malaysia (LIAM) to publish data comparing charges by different private hospitals for common procedures. With this move, BNM is potentially encroaching into the Ministry of Health (MOH)’s territory as according to the Private Healthcare Facilities & Services Act (PHFSA) 1998, the only regulated private health care charges are the doctor fees. Has the recent insurance saga opened the industry’s doors towards more regulation?

Not only BNM, but the Ministry of Finance (MoF) has also entered the chat as Deputy Finance Minister Lim Hui Ying stated that her ministry is negotiating with relevant parties regarding the increase in medical insurance premiums by between 40% and 70% next year. On the other hand, more and more MPs have also voiced their concerns about the potential rise in insurance premiums. In a joint statement, Bayan Baru MP Sim Tze Tzin, Tebrau MP Jimmy Puah, Sungai Petani MP Dr Taufiq Johari, Segamat MP R. Yuneswaran, and Miri MP Chiew Choon Mun put a spotlight on a complainant story where her insurance annual premiums have increased by 284% from 2014 to 2024. Last year alone, she had to suffer a 78% premium increase.

Projek Gajah Putih

Gajah Putih/White Elephant is an expression used to describe something that is expensive or costly to maintain but has no practical use or value.

  1. River of Life Project — After having spent RM3.915 bil or 89.7% of its spending ceiling for the initiative, barulah Putrajaya came to its senses and decided to cancel five out of 12 River of Life (RoL) projects that are still in the pre-implementation stage. Federal Territories Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa, told the Parliament via a written reply that the projects are cancelled as they are not significant enough to achieve the objectives of the River of Life’s implementation.

  2. Rapid Kuantan — After operating for more than a decade since 2012, deploying a fleet of 80 Scania buses, Prasarana Malaysia Bhd decided to discontinue providing stage bus services, thus sunsetting the Rapid Kuantan services. When the Land Public Transport Agency (Apad) tabled an open tender for the new Stage Bus Service Transformation 2.0 (SBST 2.0) program recently, Prasarana decided to not submit a tender, thus indirectly saying bye-bye to Kuantan. In 2024 (January until October), Rapid Kuantan recorded a measly 835k ridership, compared to Rapid Penang’s 13.45 mil and Rapid KL’s 61.93 mil ridership.

FashionValet scandal updates
FashionValet founders, Fadzarudin Shah Anuar and Vivy Yusof have claimed trial to face the criminal breach of trust (CBT) charge for making an RM8 mil payment from FashionValet Sdn Bhd to 30 Maple Sdn Bhd without the approval of FashionValet's board of directors. The duo posted a bail of RM200,000 and the hearing date is set for January 22 next year. If the accused is found guilty, they could individually face imprisonment of between two and 20 years, whipping, and a fine.

While in the court it was still peaceful and calm, outside the court, it was not the case. On X, former Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) CEO Jalil Rasheed lambasted the individuals who approved the investment into FashionValet in the first place. Quoting Rasheed, “The very people who approved this are still being adulated as corporate heroes and giving talks on what success looks like. It’s a failure of society for giving them airtime and space.” He then continued his attack by stating that the one who approved the investment, manages a company like a ‘Malay welfare department’.

Business news

  1. In filling up the post of the most unwanted job in the world, Intel has been evaluating a number of outsiders to fill up its CEO post after outsing company veteran Pat Gelsinger. One of the wildcard names that pops out is Johor-born Lip-Bu Tan. Given that Tan is chosen, he needs to turn around a massive ship into the black again as Intel is expected to enter the red territory, for the first time since 1986, with an expected USD3.68 bil loss this year.

  2. Creador-backed discount store operator Eco-Shop Marketing Bhd is planning to dip its toes into the public market via an initial public offering (IPO) to raise as much as RM800 mil. The company plans to use its IPO proceeds to expand its store network, particularly in suburban and rural areas, while also investing in logistics and distribution infrastructure, particularly in Selangor, Sabah and Sarawak. The company operates 320 stores nationwide and recorded a net profit of RM177.28 mil net profit at the back of RM2.4 bil revenue in FY2024. View prospectus here.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Israel is creating buffer zones with controversial white phosphorous
Data collected by Lebanese researchers and environmental activist group Green Southerners has indicated that more than 918 hectares in Southern Lebanon have been attacked using white phosphorus, munitions that Israel uses openly in blatant violations of international humanitarian laws.

White phosphorus munitions ignite when exposed to oxygen at temperatures above 30 Celsius and rain down streaks of dense white smoke mixed with phosphorus oxides. The fiery fragments continue to burn – on vegetation, buildings, or right through human flesh – until they are fully oxidised or deprived of oxygen.

Israel claims that it only uses the weapon to create a smokescreen on the battlefield, but rights groups reported that it has deployed it over populated areas, not battlefields, in both Gaza and Lebanon. The research also confirmed that Israel used the munition with higher intensity in the early months of the conflict, particularly the first two months of the attacks in 2023.

Not coincidentally, urban planning researchers in Lebanon have found out that the area targeted with white phosphorus is included in the strip where Israel did not allow southerners to return to after the ceasefire on Wednesday - an area identical to their former occupation zone in the 1980s and 1990s. They believe that it is part of Israel’s effort to create a buffer zone and take full control of the area.

UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson fatally shot in New York
In what appeared as a bold and premeditated shooting attack, CEO of UnitedHealthcare Brian Thompson was assassinated on Wednesday and pronounced dead shortly after arrival at the emergency department of Roosevelt Hospital. He was on his way to UnitedHealth Group’s investor day at the Hilton in Manhattan, New York and was shot in front of the hotel.

The shooter was seen stepping out onto the sidewalk from behind a car and approached Thompson from behind, firing several rounds that struck him at least once in the back and at least once in the right calf. After initial shots, the gun appeared to malfunction before the assailant fired again.

UnitedHealth Group is the biggest healthcare conglomerate in the United States based on revenue and its market cap stands at about USD563 bil. UnitedHealthcare posted more than USD 281 bil in revenue last year, making up more than two-thirds of UnitedHealth Group’s annual revenue for 2023. They are apparently infamous for their high denial of claims compared to other insurance companies in the US.

Scores of theories and discussions (and nasty comments) have set ablaze on X, particularly related to the possible motive for the killing:

Mexico announces largest fentanyl seizure in its history
Things seem to be moving in Mexico. After Trump’s threat of slapping the country with a 25% tariff, if they don’t do something about their problem of drug trafficking and immigration into the US, Mexico announced its largest-ever seizure of the synthetic opioid fentanyl. The haul came after its authorities launched two operations in the coastal state of Sinaloa. 

In a separate announcement, the government also announced that it had detained more than 5,200 migrants and asylum seekers as they headed towards the US border. Security analysts believe that it indicates that Mexico is reacting to the pressure from the US. Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum said that the fentanyl investigation had been going on for some time and finally bore fruit.

Fentanyl is the primary cause of overdose deaths in the US. The US Drug Enforcement Administration describes the synthetic opioid as “100 times more potent” than morphine.

In a 12-month period from 2020 to 2021, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that deaths linked to synthetic opioids had risen more than 55% in the country.

Another major source of fentanyl to the US? China.

Shorts:

  1. Local authorities in Congo investigating an unknown disease that has killed 143 people

    Authorities are on high alert over an unknown disease that has spread in the Democratic Republic of the Congo's southwestern province that has killed 143 people in November, with a number of infected people still rising. The infected people suffered from flu-like symptoms, including high fever and severe headaches. The UN health agency had been alerted to the presence of the disease last week, and it was working alongside Congo's public health ministry to make further investigations.

  2. Two new e-payment methods in mid-2025 as S’pore moves to phase out corporate cheques

    Singapore is introducing 2 new electronic payment methods from mid-2025 as part of their move to gradually phase out corporate cheques. The two methods will allow deferred payments or post-dated transactions. The new payment systems EDP and EDP+ can be used via the digital banking platforms of seven banks, namely DBS Bank, OCBC Bank, UOB, Citibank, HSBC, Maybank and Standard Chartered Bank. To buffer enough time to switch to the new e-payment methods, the deadline to stop processing corporate cheques has been pushed to the end of December 2026.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

  1. Skynet - slowly, but surely.

  1. Remember this science topic back in school where a feather and basketball, if released simultaneously in a vacuum, will they hit the ground simultaneously? It’s hard to envision it, but now, you can witness it in real life in a massive vacuum chamber.