☕️ New airline in town - Ascend Airways is ready to fly

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

The Semak Mule portal is a free online platform where the public can check if a suspicious bank account, phone number, or company name is linked to financial scams, launched by the police. The portal has now identified 2,717,994 positive matches linked to financial fraud cases. According to Federal Commercial Crime Investigation Department director Rusdi Mohd Isa, the portal currently contains data on 299,531 bank accounts, 233,568 phone numbers, and 7,867 company names. The portal was launched on October 7, 2020, meant to prevent financial fraud by allowing users to verify details before making payments or transfers.

Another interesting figure on the Semak Mule portal is that it has recorded over 37 mil visitors since its launch. Between Jan 1 and Oct 26, 2025, the portal saw 3.8 mil visits, which Rusdi said reflected a growing public awareness of online transaction safety. The portal has also gained international recognition, with Singapore, Brunei, the Philippines, and Indonesia using it as a reference for their own versions. Visit the site here.

Still on scams, but no longer on the portal, police have cracked down on thousands of mule accounts being misused for online fraud, leading to over 2,000 arrests, with suspects nabbed across two large-scale operations conducted nationwide. Operasi Mule NSRC saw 1,303 suspects arrested and 778 investigation papers opened. Operation Merpati led to the arrest of 790 individuals for having bank accounts used for e-commerce fraud, while a further 30 were arrested for operating call centres for fraudulent activities. 660 investigation papers were opened, involving losses of over RM11 mil.

Want to know how prone you are to be a scam victim? Do this test by the Securities Commission.

One more today - mark your calendar. The High Court has fixed Dec 26 to deliver its decision on Najib Razak’s graft trial involving the misappropriation of RM2.28 bil from 1Malaysia Development Bhd.

Together with Proton

💡 EV Savings Made Real with the e.MAS 5
Malaysians switching to the all-electric e.MAS 5 can enjoy major cost savings vs. petrol cars. Over 10 years, maintenance costs are just RM2,700 (vs. RM6,737 for petrol), thanks to fewer moving parts and a durable CATL battery. Charging costs? Also a win. Compared to petrol at RM1.99/L, EV charging at off-peak rates slashes your 10-year fuel bill from RM38k to just RM12.4k—saving RM25,759! Bonus: that’s like funding 36 months of groceries.

Buy now and get the Power Pack (worth RM8,000), which includes:

• RM2,000 for trading in an old/non-roadworthy car

• Free 7kW home charger (worth RM1,500)

• Free 5-year internet (RM1,800 value)

• RM1,000 trade-in bonus with CARSOME

• 5-year loan at 1.98% interest

Register your interest here now. Limited-time offer. T&Cs apply. 

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Less than 1% used more than 300 litres of fuel per month
The Finance Ministry released a statement outlining that fewer than 1% of Malaysians used up their 300-litre monthly quota of subsidised petrol under the BUDI95 programme last month. On average, consumers barely touch the 50% mark of the allotted quota, having consumed an average of 98.2 litres of RON95 petrol up to Oct 26. As of the latest, a total of 16.55 mil Malaysians are eligible for the subsidised petrol, exceeding the ministry’s initial projection of 15 mil recipients.

However, the Finance Ministry did raise a red flag in terms of the subsidised petrol usage, as unusual spending patterns were detected near border areas, including recipients who used up their monthly limit in a short period. The pattern clearly pointed towards the act of misappropriation or resale of subsidised petrol to unqualified buyers, thus, Putrajaya will now further tighten its monitoring of Budi95 to prevent any misuse of the petrol subsidy.

No to 65-70 EPF withdrawal age
Seniors are making their voices loud and clear, rejecting the World Bank’s proposal to raise the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) withdrawal age to between 65 and 70. At the moment, depositors can withdraw from their EPF account, up to one-third of their savings, starting from the age of 50. Economists such as Prof Mohd Nazari Ismail of Universiti Malaya echoed the concern, as it does not make sense to raise the EPF withdrawal age if the official retirement age remains at 60. Other subject matter experts, such as Sunway University economist Prof Yeah Kim Leng, supported the World Bank’s proposal as a reasonable step forward, but he added that flexibility must be maintained, including the conversion of half of the depositors’ savings into an annuity account for continued financial security. Clearly, one-size-fits-all is not the way forward when it comes to retirement planning.

Responding to the public outcry, the World Bank reiterated that it did not recommend raising EPF retirement age to 65, as reported. But instead, the policy paper released by the global body focused on non-contributory social pensions, specifically the Bantuan Warga Emas (BWE) programme and not EPF. However, the World Bank did concur that it previously recommended Malaysia gradually raise the retirement age in line with global trends and longer life expectancy.
View here the World Bank’s policy paper that started this whole conversation.

Business

Are we ready to go down the rare earth rabbit hole?
Not too long ago, most Malaysians would loathe with the idea of Lynas setting up shop in Malaysia. However, now, PM Anwar announced that an RM600 mil super magnet manufacturing facility will be developed by JS Link and Lynas Malaysia in Pahang, marking a significant milestone in the domestic rare earth downstream industry. At the moment, JS Link has already purchased the land and wants to begin the construction phase. The new super magnet facility will have the capacity to produce up to 3,000 tonnes of neodymium-iron-boron sintered permanent magnets. While it is good to bank on the rare earth trend, are we ready for this? Rare earth projects, especially within the downstream industry, will always produce hazardous by-products that need to be managed properly. Even if we purchased the best technology to process and contain the hazardous waste, maintaining the technology is key, and Malaysia is not known to have a good maintenance culture. Disaster did happen in the past when it comes to rare earth projects, such as the 1982 Bukit Merah radioactive pollution, which led to seven deaths and a generation of birth defects for the local community.

New airline in town - Ascend Airways is ready to fly
Another local airline is set to grace the domestic sky as Ascend Airways Malaysia has secured its operating approvals. The airline is scheduled to begin operations this November, starting with its first Boeing 737-800SF aircraft. The Kuala Lumpur-based carrier is a subsidiary of the Irish-headquartered Avia Solutions Group, a global provider of aircraft, crew, maintenance, and insurance (ACMI) services. Ascend Airways intends to focus on ACMI and charter services for both passenger and cargo operations across Malaysia and the region. Germal Singh Khera is the Ascend Airways Malaysia CEO, where he previously was Malaysian Aviation Commission (MAVCOM) director from 2015 until 2021 and has served with Malaysian Airlines for 34 years prior to that. Sounds a lot more legit than MYAirline.

Johor will moo its way into the milk industry
Johor Agriculture, Agro-Based Industry and Rural Development Committee chairman Zaha­ri Sarip stated that under the Jemaluang Dairy Valley (JDV) project, Johor aims to produce more than 3 mil litres of fresh milk in 2026. JDV is a strategic collaboration between the Johor government and the East Coast Economic Region Development Council, which is being managed by Jema­luang Dairy Valley Sdn Bhd. As a comparison, the annual raw milk production of Farm Fresh is 34.7 mil litres.

Shorts

1. No such thing as self-test kits for influenza

   Health Minister Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad warned the public that there is no such thing as an approved self-test kit for influenza in the market. Instead, individuals should seek immediate medical attention at clinics or hospitals and patients must undergo proper examination and receive treatment from qualified medical professionals. The minister’s statement came after the Medical Devices Authority (MDA) issued an advisory urging healthcare professionals not to purchase influenza test kits from e-commerce platforms, even if the products appear legitimate or registered.

2. Authorities beef up security at the northern border

   Following the gruesome killing of a Malaysian in southern Thailand, the General Operations Force (GOF) Southeast Brigade has stepped up security and tightened inspections along the Malaysia-Thailand border. Acting commander Asst Comm Ijid Landu Binju said that although the shooting of the Malaysian occurred on the Thailand side of the border, the Malaysian side will always remain vigilant.
   

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

No more titles, no more prince for Andrew
King Charles III, who was facing immense pressure to act over ex-prince Andrew’s relationship with sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, has officially stripped his brother of his remaining titles and evicted him from his royal residence. The move means Andrew will no longer be a prince or be known as “His Royal Highness”, “Duke of York”, “Earl of Inverness” or “Baron Killyleagh” – all titles he held until now. He will now be known as Andrew Mountbatten Windsor. Andrew faced a new round of public criticism after emails emerged earlier this month showing he had remained in contact with Epstein longer than he previously admitted, and then followed by the publication of Nobody’s Girl, by Giuffre, who alleged she had sex with Andrew when she was 17. Andrew, now 65, has long denied Giuffre’s claims, but stepped down from royal duties after a disastrous November 2019 BBC interview in which he attempted to rebut her allegations. Two days after being stripped of his title, a publication of 2010 correspondence between Andrew and Jeffrey Epstein revealed that he had hoped to meet Epstein after his prison release, indicating that their “friendship” continued well after Epstein’s conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor in July 2009. The correspondence was released on Friday in unsealed court documents from a 2023 legal case between the US Virgin Islands and JP Morgan.

Fun fact: The last time a British prince was stripped of his title was in 1919, when Prince Ernest Augustus, who was a UK royal and also a prince of Hanover, had his British title removed for siding with Germany during World War I.

Civilians in danger

Opposition claims ‘hundreds’ killed in Tanzania post-election protests
After the elections on Wednesday, Tanzania’s main opposition party has claimed hundreds of people have been killed in protests following the disputed election results, with the UN saying it has “credible reports” that at least 10 people had died. However, Tanzania’s Foreign Minister Mahmoud Thabit Kombo, denied that “excessive force” had been used on the protesters, and denied the opposition reports about hundreds of people killed. Demonstrations erupted on Wednesday in Dar-es-Salaam, a city of more than seven million people, after disputed and chaotic elections that saw the two main opposition parties barred from participating. So much for democracy. President Samia Suluhu Hassan was declared the winner of the presidential election, securing 98% of the votes.

Supermarket blast in Mexico kills at least 23 people
A deadly explosion had occurred in a Waldo supermarket in the northwestern Mexican state of Sonora, killing at least 23 people and wounding at least 11. The prosecutor’s office in Sonora said that “the working assumption is that the incident was accidental, and the investigation is looking into a transformer located inside the store”, with local public security authorities said they had ruled out an “attack” or “event related to a violent act” against civilians.The explosion came as Mexico celebrated the Day of the Dead over the weekend, when families honour deceased loved ones.

Shorts

1. Egypt’s USD1 bil grand museum is now open

   After 20 years of countless delays in construction, the massive USD1 bil Grand Egyptian Museum has now officially opened its doors, welcoming visitors from all around the world to witness the grandeur of the Egyptian legacy. Located just next to the pyramids of Giza, the museum is billed as the world’s largest archaeological facility for single civilisation. More than 50,000 items will be housed in the museum, including an 83-ton, 3,200-year-old colossus of Ramesses II and a 4,500-year-old boat belonging to Khufu, the pharaoh credited with building the pyramids. Watch the opening ceremony of the museum here. 

2. Nvidia tightens AI ties with Korean partners

   Nvidia and the South Korean government had announced an expanded partnership to boost the country’s AI infrastructure and physical AI capabilities, which includes partnerships with major Korea tech companies namely Hyundai Motor, Samsung, SK, and Naver. South Korea will secure over 260,000 of Nvidia’s latest GPUs to meet its growing AI demands, with around 50,000 of it supporting public initiatives and the balance going to the said companies. Samsung also announced plans to build an AI mega-factory in partnership with Nvidia, bringing AI into every stage of its manufacturing for semiconductors, mobile devices, and robotics.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. The rough history of Timor-Leste. A major win for them to finally be part of ASEAN.

2. Probably the best Halloween costume play this year.

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3. A unique POV: PMX POV of G-Dragon’s performance at APEC South Korea 2025.