☕️ Najib’s house arrest bid rejected by court

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

The Tai Po fire, which damaged seven buildings and killed 55 people, has Hong Kong’s insurance sector bracing for record claims of HKD2.6 bil (RM1.37 bil). Insurance players there are also bracing for a surge in personal and property insurance payments in the coming year, with many firms already setting up hotlines, as well as simplifying and speeding up the claims process to provide additional help to those in need. The fire even led to the Insurance Authority forming a special task force to ensure insurers accelerate compensation processes for claims related to the fire. This included waiving the need for death certificates to process claims and offering grace periods on premium payments.

Locally, fires have also left their mark in 2025. According to Housing and Local Government Minister Nga Kor Ming, fires have cost Malaysia and its people over RM1.57 bil in losses from January to September 25 this year. Nga stated that these significant losses highlighted the need to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the Fire and Rescue Department. The government will be allocating RM1.43 bil for 27 new physical and equipment programmes, along with 59 maintenance programmes for local fire and rescue responders over the next five years.

Unfortunately, people do not make things easier for our firefighters. The Fire and Rescue Department had to issue notices to 373 childcare centres, about a third of the 1,172 inspected, that have failed to comply with safety regulations upon inspection. That number was recorded since October to December 15 this year. According to Deputy Housing and Local Government Minister Aiman Athirah Sabu, 41 notices were issued to private primary and secondary institutions out of the 234 inspected in the same period. Enforcement will be implemented through the Fire and Rescue Department via activities to eliminate fire hazards on premises to ensure that operators always comply with the conditions set, with no unapproved modifications to the premises.

In China, when drone technology meets fire-fighting:

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

RM50m GEG claim resurfaces
An aide to former Health Minister Dr Zaliha Mustafa has claimed that she once rejected an offer of RM50 mil from unnamed individuals to abandon the tobacco Generational End Game, or GEG policy, ahead of the tabling of the Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Bill in Parliament in Nov 2023. The claim was made by G Sivamalar, who said multiple parties attempted to approach Zaliha through intermediaries and brokers. According to Sivamalar, the approach was dismissed outright and Zaliha refused to meet anyone regarding the matter. Sivamalar said she personally witnessed the incident and described Zaliha as principled in the face of pressure from tobacco companies and large corporations.

She added that no report was lodged with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission or the police at the time, saying the team chose to focus on their work instead of pursuing the issue further. Sivamalar said she could not recall the identities of those involved but stressed that the offer was rejected without hesitation and that Zaliha remained firm on her position. And just like that, they let the issue slide? Zaliha served as Health Minister from December 2022 to December 2023 before becoming Federal Territories minister and was dropped from the Cabinet in the latest reshuffle by PM Anwar Ibrahim. For the better, it seems.

The GEG provision, which aimed to ban smoking and vaping for individuals born after 2007, was initially part of the bill but was later removed following a collective Cabinet decision. Health Minister Dzulkefly Ahmad later said the move was made after the Attorney General advised that the provision was unconstitutional.

Najib’s house arrest bid rejected by court

Rejected: The High Court dismissed Najib Razak’s application to serve the remainder of his prison sentence under house arrest after ruling that a so-called royal addendum had no legal standing. Judge Alice Loke Yee Ching said that while clemency is a royal prerogative, it must be exercised within the framework of the Federal Constitution and through the Federal Territories Pardons Board. Read the summary of the verdict here. Declassified minutes showed that the board had only agreed to reduce Najib’s sentence to six years in prison and his fine to RM50 mil for his SRC International conviction, with no decision made on house arrest. The judge added that home detention would significantly alter the nature of imprisonment and conflict with existing prison laws. The play is still not over - Team Najib will appeal the decision.

Public perception: Public reaction to the case was reflected in a nationwide survey by Projek SAMA (view here), which highlighted strong opposition to perceived double standards in the justice system. Among Malays, 44.8% opposed a pardon while 44.0% supported it. An overwhelming 95% of Chinese respondents rejected the idea, while 62.2% of Indians were in favour. Across all groups, most respondents called for equal application of the law and rejected special arrangements such as home detention.

On Malay rulers’ power: Najib’s hotshot lawyer Shafee Abdullah claimed that the High Court’s decision reduces the power of Malay rulers. Indera Mahkota MP Saifuddin Abdullah said that, as a Pahang native, he felt insulted by how Sultan Abdullah’s decree was treated. Now, let’s listen to a constitutional expert, Assoc Prof Dr Khairil Azmin Mokhtar. He said the ruling does not negate the power of the Sultan and actually upholds the principle that the power of pardon is to be exercised according to the Federal Constitution.

Also in court - Namewee: In a separate court ruling the same day, rapper Wee Meng Chee, better known as Namewee, was acquitted of a charge of self-administering drugs after pathology results came back negative, although he still faces a separate drug possession charge.

Bursa-listed pawnbroking business expands further
Evergreen Max Cash Capital Bhd is continuing to grow its pawnbroking footprint after securing approval from the Housing and Local Government Ministry for four new licences. This will take the group’s total outlet count to more than 100 nationwide. Currently, the company operates 98 outlets, comprising 29 conventional pawnshops and 69 Islamic pawnshops across several states. The company has grown rapidly, operating just 22 outlets when it listed on Bursa Malaysia in Sep 2023. Pawnbroking is a big business - the company recorded RM50.7 mil in revenue and RM9.5 mil in net profit in its recent quarter, with a market cap of RM392 mil. View earnings here.
There are 3 listed pawnbroking companies on Bursa with the other 2 being Pappajack Bhd and Well Chip Group Bhd. A recent cover by The Edge on these 3 companies here. 

We previously broke down the business model of pawnbrokers:

Shorts

1. SEA Games redemption for Team Malaysia

   Malaysia closed the 2025 SEA Games in Thailand with a strong turnaround, finishing fourth overall with 57 gold, 57 silver and 117 bronze medals. The tally exceeded targets, set new records and marked the country’s best haul outside Kuala Lumpur, with athletes delivering across athletics, cycling, squash, shooting and team sports despite challenging venues and late changes. The final medal tally of SEA Games 2025 here.

2. Makeshift bomb discovered in Nilai
   Police confirmed the discovery of three suspected improvised explosive devices (IED) following an explosion in the Desa Palma area. The explosion originated from a vehicle, according to witnesses. A subsequent search discovered the IED in a house 250 metres away from the vehicle. No suspects have been identified yet. With the year-end celebrations coming up, we pray hard for no unfortunate events to occur. 

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Japan’s Infrastructure: Onwards?

Japan prepares to restart world’s biggest nuclear reactor
A recent regional vote will allow the world’s largest nuclear power plant to resume operations. This marks a turning point in Japan’s return to nuclear energy, almost 15 years after the Fukushima disaster. The plant was among 54 reactors shut after the 2011 earthquake and since then, 14 have been restarted. However, the residents of Niigata, where the reactor is located, remain split on the decision to restart the reactor, despite new jobs and potentially lower electricity bills. The objections persist despite the Tokyo Electric Power Company pledging to inject JPY100 bil (RM2.59 bil) into Niigata in a bid to win over the residents. Is there a bigger agenda? Probably. AI. 

Tokyo to launch USD19 bil programme for national AI system
Japanese authorities will be collaborating with the private sector to launch a large-scale project to develop a national AI system. The project is expected to cost about JPY3 tril (RM77.69 bil), with SoftBank and more than ten other Japanese companies expected to establish a new venture next spring to develop Japan’s largest AI baseline model. The new company will be under SoftBank’s leadership, and will bring together about 100 experts from companies selected via a competition. The goal is for Japan to close the gap with the US and China. The company will be purchasing large quantities of high-performance semiconductors from US chipmaker Nvidia. The government will also partially subsidise infrastructure costs and support the collection and acquisition of data for AI training.

The drug of the deal: Trump inks deals with drugmakers for lower prices
US President Donald Trump announced deals with nine drugmakers, the latest in a series of agreements to lower drug prices for some Americans in exchange for a three-year reprieve from threatened tariffs. The most recent deals mean 14 of the 17 pharmaceutical firms targeted by Trump have agreed to lower prices for the Medicaid programme for low-income and disabled people. They have also agreed to sell discounted drugs directly to consumers and launch new medicines for the same prices in the US as they do abroad. After drug firms, Trump’s next plans are to talk to insurance companies to see if they will lower prices. Some examples include Bristol-Myers Squibb Co offering its bestselling blood-thinner Eliquis to the Medicaid programme for free, with Gilead Sciences Inc also cutting the price of its hepatitis C drug Epclusa to less than USD2,500 (RM10,195) from nearly 10 times that figure. Honestly, first thought on reading drugmaker was drug cartel.

Money matters

Larry Ellison gives USD40.4 bil personal guarantee for Paramount’s bid for Warner Bros
The Oracle co-founder has agreed to provide a personal guarantee of USD40.4 bil (RM164.75 bil) in equity financing to back the all-cash bid by Paramount Skydance for Warner Bros Discovery. This guarantee is expected to bolster the deal’s financing terms, which were previously criticised by the board of Warner Bros, with Paramount’s bid rejected in favour of Netflix’s bid. However, the amended terms do not change the USD30-per-share all-cash offer. Ellison has also agreed not to revoke the Ellison family trust or transfer its assets during the pendency of the transaction.

How’s Netflix financing the deal: Netflix has refinanced part of its USD59 bil bridge loan to support its bid for Warner Bros. The streaming giant has secured a USD5 bil revolving credit facility and two USD10 bil delayed-draw term loans, leaving about USD34 bil of the bridge facility to be syndicated. The proceeds will be used to pay the cash portion of the deal, related fees, and expenses.
Learn: What is a bridge loan?

You know those studio logos that appear before a movie starts? Have a good laugh here.

War is good for Israel Inc. 
War is business, and business is apparently really good. Israeli defence exports increased 13% in 2024 over 2023, leading to a record of almost USD15 bil (RM61.17 bil). The exports were dominated by missiles, rockets, and air-defence systems, with other exports being AI and surveillance tools such as facial recognition technology. More than half the deliveries go to European militaries, with the rest going to the Asia-Pacific region, where India is the top buyer. Israel is also one of the top 10 arms-exporting countries in the world, despite the buyers knowing that there is a legal obligation not to trade with countries that are committing war crimes and crimes against humanity. A sad way to put this is, Israel is self-sufficient to feed its genocidal hunger in Gaza.

Shorts

1. Bangladeshi election candidate shot dead, mobs target media

   Tens of thousands of mourners, including the Bangladeshi government’s interim leader, attended the funeral of slain youth leader and election candidate Sharif Osman Hadi amid tight security. Hadi was shot dead last week by masked assailants while launching his campaign for an election due in February. He was a key figure during 2024’s student-led uprising that toppled former PM Sheikh Hasina. Hadi’s death has also led to mob violence against the media and threats against journalists, with assailants claiming the media outlets were serving the interests of India and Sheikh Hasina.

2. China to scrub small overdue debts to spur lending

   China’s central bank unveiled a one-off credit repair scheme to allow overdue personal debts incurred to be removed from credit records once fully repaid, in an attempt to revive faltering household loan demand. However, the personal debts had to be CNY10,000 (RM5,791) or less and incurred between the start of 2020 and the end of 2025. The debts also had to be repaid in full by March 31, 2026. This comes after data showing new bank lending fell short of expectations in November, weighed down by shrinking household loans, with retail sales hitting their lowest level since the end of China’s strict zero-COVID policies.
   Sounds like a soft form of debt jubilee. 

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

2026 movies to look forward to

1. Based on the ancient Greek epic The Odyssey trailer just dropped. Directed by Christopher Nolan, with an insane ensemble of cast - Matt Damon, Tom Holland, Robert Pattinson, Zendaya, Lupita Nyong’o, Charlize Theron, Anne Hathaway etc.

2. Hugh Jackman in The Sheep Detectives. When the character Jackman plays in the movie got murdered, the sheep step up to solve the case.

3. Tom Cruise in comedy movie Digger.