☕️ Birth cert forgers 'selling out country', says MACC chief

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Literature led Malaysia’s copyright applications in 2024 with 7,382 filings, the highest among all fields, according to the Intellectual Property Corporation of Malaysia (MyIPO). Overall, copyright applications rose to 9,363, up from 6,807 in 2023. Visual arts and films followed with 993 and 329 applications, respectively, reflecting growing creativity and intellectual property awareness in the country. This surge highlights the importance of protecting artistic and literary works in Malaysia’s evolving creative economy.

A controversial Oxfam International report has reignited debates over whether the UK owes reparations to India, claiming that the former colonial power extracted nearly USD65 trillion (RM287 trillion ~ MY’s nominal GDP in 2024 was about RM1.9 trillion) in wealth from the subcontinent between 1765 and 1900. Adjusted for today’s value, USD33.8 trillion of this wealth reportedly enriched the UK’s wealthiest 10%, with much of it tied to compensation paid to slave owners after the abolition of slavery in 1843. The report, released at the World Economic Forum in Davos, has sparked heated discussions, highlighting the enduring economic legacy of colonialism and its impact on global inequality.

USD140 mil for space research in 2025 – Turkey’s space ambitions are gaining momentum, with state spending on space research and development rising from USD4.7 mil in 2013. The Turkish Space Agency, established in 2018, is spearheading a ten-year plan that includes launching home-made satellites and achieving a moon landing. In December, Turkey began constructing a USD350 mil spaceport in Somalia, underscoring its commitment to becoming a key player in space exploration. For President Erdogan, space is not only a matter of national prestige but also a strategic complement to Turkey’s rapidly growing defense industry.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

They are selling out the country, says Azam Baki
The Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) has uncovered a fraudulent birth certification scandal via two operations the agency conducted, dubbed Op Outlander and Op Birth. 16 individuals were detained as part of the operations and the raids targeted several locations, including clinics and law firms in Klang Valley and Johor. The scheme involved late birth registrations of non-citizens as citizens, as well as the registration of births using fake documents. Several individuals involved in the scheme even offered up to RM18,000 as a bribe to public servants in exchange for assistance in processing birth registrations using fake supporting documents, such as counterfeit hospital birth certificates. During the press conference relating to the fraudulent birth certification scandal, the clearly angry MACC chief commissioner, Azam Baki, likened the actions of the group of people involved in the fraudulent birth registration scandal to ‘selling out our country’.

Responding to the scandal, executive director and co-founder of the North-South Initiative Adrian Pereira stated that the existence of the fraudulent birth registration scheme could incentivise illegal activities such as human trafficking involving children. Pereira urged professional bodies to have a higher standard of monitoring to deter their members from being involved in such syndicates.

In a separate matter, apart from fake birth certificates, the discovery of the use of a lost MyKad has led the National Registration Department (NRD) to expose a counterfeit identity card operation which produces forged MyKads. Home Minister Saifuddin Nasution revealed that an individual complained that his MyKad, which was lost 12 years ago, had been flagged in a phone purchase transaction, resulting in a financial loss of over RM14,000. Further digging by the NRD has led to the arrest of a 31-year-old male who possessed equipment used for producing counterfeit MyKads. Both MyKads and birth certificates are official documents that prove that we are Malaysians.

More Malaysian youths are bankrupt
Youth and Sports Minister Hannah Yeoh revealed that a total of 5,272 youths below the age of 34 were declared bankrupt from 2020 to this year, with the top reason being personal loans. Yeoh said that of the total, 5,189 were between 25 and 34, while 83 others were below the age of 25. The trend of bankruptcy among youths shows an increase, with 877 cases recorded in 2024, which is more than 20% higher than the 727 cases recorded in the previous year.

Among the reasons why youths went bankrupt: -

• Personal loans (46.4%);

• Business loans (19.2%);

• Housing loans (7.9%);

• Vehicle hire-purchase loans (7.4%);

• Corporate guarantees (6.4%).

On a separate event during the Borak Harini podcast hosted by Berita Harian journalist Ilah Hafiz Aziz, Malaysian Insolvency Department (MDI) director-general M Bakri Abd Majid said that fresh graduates that just entered the workforce should be barred from owning credit cards. Bakri added that credit card debt was a major reason many young workers faced serious financial trouble, i.e. utilising credit cards to sustain a certain lifestyle, such as travelling and dressing up for OOTD. Bakri offered an example of how certain youths that can only afford a ‘P’ brand vehicle, purchased a ‘H’ brand vehicle, instead of ukur baju di badan sendiri.

Malaysian-born chip industry veteran named new Intel CEO
Intel former board member Lip-Bu Tan is now the new Intel CEO, three months after Pat Gelsinger was ousted. Gelsinger was removed after his ambitious and costly plan to turn the company around went south, crashed, and burned. After the appointment of Tan was announced, Intel shares surged 12% in extended trading on Wednesday, and analysts welcomed the move which they said was likely to bring some stability to the chipmaker. The company’s stock had declined 60% in 2024. Tan is now a naturalised US citizen. His original accent is still intact despite that.

This also comes as reports surfaced that Taiwan semiconductor giant, TSMC pitched to US-based Nvidia, Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Broadcom to create a consortium to operate Intel's factories. Under the proposal, the Taiwanese chipmaking giant would run the operations of Intel's foundry division, which makes chips adapted for the needs of customers, but it would not own more than 50%. The move by TSMC was made after US President Donald Trump’s administration nudged the company to assist in turning around the troubled US industrial icon. Now, all hands on deck, both internally and externally, to make Intel great again. Hopefully, Tan can also revive the scrapped plan for Intel to invest in Penang for advanced chip packaging.

Shorts:

1. No more open display of smoking products

   Under the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health (Sales Control) Regulations 2024, effective Apr 1, 2025, cigarettes and tobacco products (including vapes) will no longer be allowed to be on open display in Kuala Lumpur, Penang and Selangor. The new tobacco and vape sales regulation also prohibits the sale of tobacco products, smoking substances, or substitutes online or through vending machines. Those who breach this law can be fined between RM500 and RM30,000, while organisations may face fines of up to RM300,000 or imprisonment.

2. Enforcing mandatory Socso contribution increases worker protection, says minister

   Human Resources Minister Steven Sim said that he will work diligently to ensure that the Gig Workers Bill is passed and enforced ASAP, which will pave the way for mandatory Social Security Organisation (Socso) contributions from gig workers. As of now, due to the voluntary nature of Socso contributions, only 26% of the country’s 1.16 mil gig workers contribute.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Trump: ‘Nobody is expelling any Palestinians from Gaza’
In response to the above statement, Hamas has said that they welcome Trump’s pullback from his proposed permanent displacement of over 2 mil Palestinians from Gaza, a proposal that sent shock waves throughout the world last month. The apparent retreat happened after Arab foreign ministers met in Qatar with the US’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff on Wednesday to discuss reconstruction for Gaza. Foreign ministers from Qatar, Jordan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the secretary-general of the Palestine Liberation Organization were present at the meeting. Egypt is particularly pleased with the decision, with its foreign ministry saying that the position reflects “an understanding of the need to prevent further deterioration of the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the importance of finding fair, sustainable solutions to the Palestinian issue”. Egypt is currently spearheading an initiative to rebuild the Gaza Strip, which was approved at the Arab League Summit held in Cairo on Mar 4.

Business:

• UAE injects USD2 bil into crypto exchange Binance
  UAE state-backed fund MGX has invested a whopping USD2 bil (RM8.88 bil) for a minority stake in Binance, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency exchange. It is MGX’s biggest investment into a crypto company by far, and also makes the fund Binance’s first institutional investor. The transaction was made in stablecoin, a type of cryptocurrency pegged to real-world assets, making this the largest investment ever paid in crypto. Interestingly, Binance is under investigation in France, where it is suspected of failing to fulfil its obligations to control customers’ funds. Its founder, Chinese-born Changpeng Zhao, last year pleaded guilty to violating US anti-money laundering laws and Binance agreed to pay USD4.3 bil (RM19.1 bil) to settle charges.

• Scopely will acquire Pokemon Go’s Niantic for USD3.5 bil
  Mobile games giant Scopely has announced that they will be acquiring Niantic’s game unit for USD3.5 bil (RM15.5 billion). The purchase will add Pokémon Go, Pikmin Bloom, and Monster Hunter Now to Scopely’s stable, which includes Monopoly Go, Marvel Strike Force, and Star Trek Fleet Command. Niantic is known for mobile games that combine real-world mapping and exploration with play by synching challenges or accomplishments with locations detected by smartphones, with more than 100 mil people playing Niantic games around the world. Scopely is looking forward to accelerating the team’s creativity through the partnership.

Argentina football fans x retirees vs police over pension cuts
On Wednesday, football fans and retirees came together and clashed with police during a protest in the country’s capital against economic policies implemented by President Javier Milei, including pension cuts. At least 15 people were injured, with more than 100 arrested. Argentinian retirees have been gathering each week to protest against cuts to their pensions, which have dried up since libertarian Milei took office in late 2023. One pensioner said that they are even being denied access to medicine. The pensioners teamed up with football fans from several clubs to stage the protest. In a year of drastic austerity, pensioners have taken the most pain, with pension increases having fallen far short of inflation. Nearly 60% of retirees receive only the minimum amount, equivalent to some USD340 (RM1,508.58) per month. Football really brings people together in Argentina, the land of the football GOATs.

Shorts:

1. Luckin Coffee wins Thai trademark infringement case
   Luckin Coffee won its trademark infringement case in Thailand after tirelessly fighting against Thailand’s Royal 50R Group, who opened stores bearing a version of the Luckin logo. The Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court of Thailand has ruled that Beijing-based Luckin had ‘prior and better’ rights to the trademark and awarded Luckin Coffee THB46 mil (USD1.3 mil) in damages and legal costs. These ‘historic damages’ were among the highest ever awarded in a trademark infringement case in Thailand. Just how blatant was the copyright infringement? Ultra blatant — view our thread below.

2. German spy agency concluded Covid-19 virus likely leaked from lab
   A joint report by publications in Germany had reported that the country’s spy agency BND has found that the coronavirus Covid-19 was highly likely accidentally released from China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology. It said that the institute had conducted gain-of-function experiments, whereby viruses are modified to become more transmissible to humans for research purposes. China denies that the institute ever did such research, saying that there is no credibility to the claims. It also accused Washington of politicising the matter, especially because of efforts by US intelligence agencies to investigate.

3. Nasa astronauts stranded on ISS face further delay after delayed SpaceX launch
   Looks like NASA duo Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams, who have been stranded aboard the ISS since June 2024, have to wait longer to come home. The Falcon 9 rocket propelling the NASA-SpaceX Crew-10 mission, which was supposed to bring them home, did not manage to launch on Wednesday, reportedly due to a technical issue. The duo’s prolonged stay has also become a political flashpoint, as President Donald Trump and his close advisor Elon Musk have accused ex-president Joe Biden’s administration of abandoning the pair.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. The history of the popular board game Monopoly and strategy to win, explained by a Monopoly champion.

2. Looking for something to do tomorrow morning? Mr Money TV doing a community meet up in One U - more details here.

3. Grab explains how Jaya Grocer fits into its bigger picture