☕️ One-third of political corruption cases just vanish, says Projek Sama

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

Spotlight down south: Singapore

Our neighbour city-state Singapore saw its number of billionaires rising to 55 in 2025, with a combined wealth of USD258.8 bil (RM1.065 tril), a 66.4% increase from the previous year. Six newcomers joined the list this year. Notably, of the 55, 37 of Singapore’s billionaires are self-made, according to global wealth management leader UBS. The region also reported the highest number of new billionaires across the globe, with 128 joining the list. Globally, there were 2,919 billionaires as of Apr, with their total wealth hitting a new record of USD15.8 tril, a 13% growth.

CEOs in Singapore also have an average tenure of 8.8 years, longer than the global average of 7.2 years. This is according to Russell Reynolds Associates’ Global CEO Turnover Index. Notably, the average CEO tenure across the Asia-Pacific region has dropped to 5.9 years, compared to 6.1 years in the corresponding period in 2024. The shorter tenures could be due to board demands for agility and responsiveness amid rapid market shifts and regulatory changes, prompting companies to replace CEOs earlier in the business lifecycle to sustain strategic momentum. Fun fact: Hong Kong CEOs have an average tenure of 3.7 years.

On another note, Singapore has executed 17 individuals this year for drug and murder offences, marking the highest annual tally since 2003. This has renewed debates over the city-state’s use of the death penalty, with a group even filing a challenge claiming several individuals were wrongfully executed recently. However, Singapore has long defended capital punishment for drug offences, saying the laws serve as a deterrent that helps make the city-state one of the safest places in the world.

JP Morgan CEO Jamie Dimon on Singapore:

“(Singapore) is always thinking. Based on the time I spent with GIC and MAS and the political leaders, I see they are always thinking about what’s next and how (Singapore) can get better. It’s kind of staggering, because you don’t get that everywhere in the world,” he said.

Our leaders here also think about what’s next - for their pockets.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

NGOs commenting

One-third of political corruption cases just vanish, says Projek Sama
Projek Sama found that about a third of corruption, Criminal Breach of Trust (CBT), and money-laundering cases involving politicians since 2018 were dropped by the AGC, leaving people wondering if the system is really fair. Out of 28 cases covering 21 politicians, 10 were withdrawn, and only three done due to death, technical corrections, or pre-trial compound payments.
Learn: What is criminal breach of trust?

The NGO points out delays, mid-trial pullouts, and super-long DNAA periods, some lasting over 1,900 days, which often end up turning into full acquittals. High-profile examples include Zahid Hamidi’s Yayasan Akalbudi case (77 days into trial before charges got pulled), Lim Guan Eng’s 2018 charge withdrawals, and Musa Aman’s 46 dropped charges, all linked to undisclosed letters of representation that make the process look opaque. Najib Razak is still the only one behind bars, for offences involving over RM42 mil from SRC International. Projek Sama says it’s time for bigger reforms, like tighter oversight on prosecutors and clearer political financing rules.

Your favourite political influencer might be on someone’s payroll
IDEAS is sounding the alarm on political influencers and how they get paid behind the scenes, calling on the government to make anyone involved in paid political content show their cards. Their report states that ministries and parties are leaning hard on influencers to reach people who’ve tuned out of traditional media, but the cash flow is mostly hidden. Interviews reveal creators getting paid per project anywhere from a few hundred ringgit a post to RM20k-RM40k for big videos while agencies and middlemen often take a chunk. In one instance, one influencer got RM1k a month even though RM3k was allocated.

Taxpayer-funded budgets are feeding this too, starting around RM2 mil per ministry and going up to RM14-25 mil in some agencies. IDEAS warns that all this murky money risks killing trust and is pushing again for a Political Financing Act so everyone has to disclose what they’re spending.

Traffic summonses and BUDI95
JPJ: pay now or face the road tax reaper
Malaysians who still haven’t sorted out their traffic fines have until Dec 31 to get it done or risk being blacklisted, taken to court, and even losing their BUDI95 fuel subsidy. JPJ states there are about 4.95 mil unpaid summonses since 2010 worth RM1.48 bil, on top of nearly RM6.6 bil in outstanding police fines. Despite the 50%-70% discounts offered since Nov 1, only 362,230 summonses or roughly 7% have been settled. Anyone who misses the deadline may be blocked from renewing their road tax and driving licence, which also affects BUDI95 eligibility (more clarification below on this). Fines can be paid via the MyJPJ app, JPJ kiosks, or at JPJ offices. From Jan 1 2026, the government is rolling out a new “pay fast, pay less” structure: 50% off if paid within 15 days, 33% within 30 days, no discounts after that, and blacklisting after 60 days.

Relax, your petrol subsidy isn’t tied to every unpaid summons
However, Transport Minister Anthony Loke clarified that having outstanding summonses does not automatically affect a motorist’s eligibility for the BUDI95 petrol subsidy. The subsidy and traffic fines are separate, he said, with eligibility based on being a Malaysian citizen verified via MyKad and holding a valid driving licence (or one expired for no more than three years). Maybe settling outstanding and long overdue summonses should have been an eligibility criteria - an easy way to raise revenue for the government.

Johor’s crown prince goes full crypto with RMJDT
Malaysia’s Johor regent, Tunku Mahkota Ismail, is diving into the crypto world with his new ringgit-backed stablecoin, RMJDT, launched through his company Bullish Aim Sdn Bhd on Dec 9. Pegged to the ringgit and backed by local cash and short-term government bonds, the coin is aiming to be Malaysia’s go-to for fast and secure crypto payments. The move comes as private firms across Asia, especially in Hong Kong and the US, are rolling out more regulated stablecoins, while Malaysia is also slowly warming up to “responsible innovation,” as PM Anwar Ibrahim put it earlier this year. 99% of the stablecoin is denominated in USD, so what chances are there that this will achieve any worthwhile success?

RMJDT will run on Zetrix, the blockchain behind the government-backed Malaysian Blockchain Infrastructure launched in Apr, though neither Tunku Ismail’s team nor Zetrix had any comment. Bullish Aim is also planning a digital-asset treasury company, kicking things off with an initial RM500 mil investment in Zetrix tokens, which currently trade around USD12.60 (RM51.85), down from over USD20 a year ago. This blockchain is linked to Zetrix AI (fka MyEG).

DAP: PM has six months for reform or time to reassess (but no panic yet)
Anthony Loke says DAP will take a hard look at its place in the unity government if Anwar Ibrahim doesn’t deliver clearer reform progress in the next six months, but he emphasises the party isn’t about to pull support or trigger a collapse. The comment comes after DAP’s shutout in the Sabah election and criticism that the party has gone quiet on reforms. Loke says the government needs visible wins to change public perception and that DAP is prepared to step back from cabinet roles if needed, though not to destabilise the administration. He also confirmed a new language policy is on the way within six months, which will include UEC recognition as part of a wider multilingual approach.

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

Israel military chief says ‘yellow line’ is ‘new border’ for Israel
Israel's military chief Eyal Zamir has told Israeli soldiers in Gaza that the “yellow line” that divides Gaza under Donald Trump’s 20-point ceasefire plan is the new Israel border line. This means that Israel is holding on to its current military positions and gains control of more than half of Gaza, including most agricultural land and the border crossing with Egypt. Palestinians were forced out of this eastern portion of Gaza by Israeli attacks and evacuation orders. Almost all the surviving population, over 2 mil people, are now crowded into a narrow zone of coastal sand dunes that is smaller than Washington DC. The Israeli army has also built new concrete outposts along the “yellow line” to fortify its positions and declared it a lethal boundary, even though it is not always clearly marked and a ceasefire is in place. Soldiers have repeatedly killed Palestinians accused of crossing it, including young children. Zamir’s commitment to keep troops in Gaza appears to contradict the ceasefire agreement signed in Oct, which specifies that “Israel will not occupy or annex Gaza”. Is there really a ceasefire in Gaza?

Air, land and sea chaos in Japan

Air: Tokyo accuses Chinese military planes of locking their radar onto Japanese fighter jets near the Okinawa islands. Japan's PM Sanae Takaichi vows a “calm and resolute” response, saying her country would take all possible measures to strengthen maritime and airspace surveillance and closely monitor Chinese military activities. The incident happened in the southeast of Okinawa’s main islands, where China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said it was conducting “far-sea training”. Japan’s defence ministry said it recorded about 100 fighter jet take-offs from China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier, with J-15 fighter aircraft from that carrier directing their fire-control radar onto Japanese F-15s twice.

A fire-control radar lock is one of the most threatening acts a military aircraft can take because it signals a potential attack, forcing the targeted aircraft to take evasive action. However, China denies the allegations, citing that Japan is “hyping up” the issue and making a false accusation against China to build up tension.

Land and sea: Meanwhile, on Monday, a powerful 7.5-magnitude earthquake shook northeastern Japan, injuring more than 20 people and triggering tsunami warnings that, hours later, were downgraded to advisories. Air, land, and sea chaos in Japan, literally.

Biz
The war over Warner Bros Discovery
Looks like Netflix can’t get too comfortable - another entertainment company, Paramount Skydance, backed by the billionaire Ellison family (who also has ties with Trump), said it was making a direct offer (aka hostile offer) to shareholders of USD30 (RM123.45) per share to scoop up the whole of Warner Bros., including its traditional television networks. This means that it has officially rivalled Netflix's bid for the company. Paramount is known for brands such as CBS News, Nickelodeon and Mission Impossible. Paramount's offer values the entire company at USD108.4 bil (as compared to Netflix’s USD83 bil offer), saying its proposal was a "superior alternative" to Netflix's by delivering more cash upfront to shareholders and greater prospect of approval by regulators.

Fun fact: Here is an interesting article listing 14 hostile takeovers of the past 30 years, bigger than what we are seeing now. The champion is the hostile bid made by Vodafone AirTouch for Mannesmann in 2000 for a colossal USD 177.4 bil. 🤯

Nvidia’s H200: Trump says yes, but China says hold on
Trump may have finally said yes to Nvidia exporting its chips to China, but Beijing is said to be exploring ways to permit limited access to the H200, Nvidia's second-best generation of artificial intelligence chips, despite Trump’s decision. Such a move would add a hurdle to Nvidia and other top US chipmakers' ability to address the China market. Note that Beijing has been pushing back against domestic firms' use of US technology, especially Nvidia chips, as it retaliates against American restrictions, which include banning the sale of advanced AI processors to China in the first place.

Shorts: 

1. Office building fire kills 20 in Jakarta
   20 people have been killed in a fire that erupted in the office building of Terra Drone Indonesia, a firm from Japan that provides drones for aerial survey activities with clients in sectors ranging from mining to agriculture. The fire was believed to start around midday on the first floor and then spread to the upper floors where employees were having lunch. Some workers were seen escaping from the high floors of the building using portable ladders. Authorities are focusing on evacuating victims and cooling the fire at the time of writing.

2. Saudi Arabia and Qatar shake hands for high-speed rail
   A formal agreement has been sealed between Saudi Arabia and Qatar to construct a high-speed rail connecting their capitals, which is set to be completed in six years. The train would reach speeds exceeding 300 km/h, making it a two-hour journey. The project, considered one of the most significant modern infrastructure undertakings between the countries, marks the latest attempts for improvement in ties between the two Gulf countries in recent years. The distance between the capitals of both countries is more than 580 km, or about a 6.5-hour drive. Saudi Arabia, in June 2017, once cut diplomatic and transport ties with Qatar over accusations of backing groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood and Iran.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

Made by Malaysians

1. Made by Malaysian, for Singapore. VFX creator and influencer Sofyan created a Visit Malaysia Singapore video. Amazing video. Tourism Malaysia, what’s next (for pockets)?

2. Food influencer and entrepreneur Khairulaming is back with his latest project - a RM4 mil restaurant called Rembayung in Kampung Baru, KL, employing 50 local workers. This marks the beginning of his next 10-year plan. Looking forward to what’s next from Khairulaming. IPO!

3. The iconic matchstick brand - Mancis Cap Lada. End of an era.

Scenario - Staff delivered late
Boss: I told you ASAP
Staff: I thought As Slow As Possible
Boss: No, AS SOON AS POSSIBLE
Staff: Oh, FU.
Boss: What?
Staff: Fully understood.

Happy Wednesday. Enjoy your hols tmr*
*T&C apply - only for those in Selangor