☕️ PM2.5 exceeds 3,000 in Central Kalimantan

1. MARKET SUMMARY 📈

2. NUMBERS AT A GLANCE 🔢

RM100,000 – That's how much an 86-year-old tau fu fah seller recently donated to a secondary school. Known locally as the “tau fu fah uncle”, Hong Zhong Wei donated the amount to SMJK Chan Wa in Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, to construct a new administration and teaching block. Hong, who operates a stall along Jalan Tuanku Munawir, often supported charitable causes, with the latest donation driven by his hope that children should have the opportunity for a good education. We salute you uncle TFF.

38,000 – A one-off special financial aid of RM1,000 each will go to that many taxi and rental car drivers in phases, with the first phase having started yesterday. An initial group was invited to the Ministry of Transport to receive vouchers to start off the distribution. This follows the announcement by PM Anwar during the presentation of Budget 2027. While some have questioned how this aid could be provided considering the budget has only been tabled and not passed, Transport Minister Anthony Loke clarified that the revenue used to finance the aid came from the sale of the 'H' series of special registration numbers, which has already been collected this year. The number plates reportedly pulled in RM91.2 mil in revenue.

KRW2.19 bil (RM6.67 mil) – That's how much former South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife, Kim Keon Hee, collected in inmate funds during their first year of detention. This amount is more than 8 times the president's annual salary, and each of them also received more money than any other inmate at their respective detention centres, according to data from the country's Justice Ministry. Yoon received KRW1.95 bil across 45,770 deposits between Jul 10 and Sept 9, 2026, while Kim received KRW240 mil across 10,415 deposits from her arrest on Aug 12, 2025 to Sept 9, 2026. Under South Korean law, inmates can receive money from outside the prison to buy daily necessities. These inmate accounts are capped at KRW4 mil, with any excess held until the prisoner is released or the amount is transferred to a personal bank account. Yoon had repeatedly gotten correctional officers to transfer money from his inmate account to his personal bank account, effectively freeing up the inmate account to receive more funds. Yoon reportedly withdrew nearly KRW1.94 bil across 596 transactions, about two per weekday on average.

3. IN MALAYSIA 🇲🇾

Najib’s 1MDB stay bid fails
Former PM Najib has failed to pause his 15-year jail sentence and RM11.38 bil fine while he appeals his 1MDB conviction. The High Court rejected his application on Oct 14, ruling that he had not shown the special circumstances required for a stay. Judge Noor Ruwena Md Nurdin said Najib could no longer be treated as a first-time offender following his earlier SRC International conviction, which was upheld by the Federal Court. She also said the seriousness of the offences was an important public interest consideration. His health was not accepted as grounds for a stay because the court found that he was receiving adequate medical treatment in prison.

Najib’s lawyers had argued that his age, health and the length of his sentence could expose him to complications before his appeal is heard. A prison medical report listed 14 health issues and showed that he had been prescribed 15 medications, with 14 taken daily. Najib was found guilty of 25 charges of abuse of power and money laundering involving RM2.3 bil in 1MDB funds. He is currently serving a separate SRC sentence and is due to begin the 1MDB jail term after it ends in Aug 2028. Last month, the Pardons Board allowed him to serve the remainder of his SRC sentence under home confinement if he paid a RM50 mil fine. He has not paid it and remains in prison.

Malaysia moves to criminalise rent-seeking
Malaysia plans to table legislation in 2027 to criminalise rent-seeking practices, including so-called “Ali Baba” arrangements where licences or contracts are sold, leased or used by someone other than the person or company they were originally awarded to. Economy Minister Akmal Nasrullah Mohd Nasir said the government is still deciding whether to introduce a stand-alone law or amend existing legislation, with penalties to be decided after further study and consultation. The proposed law aims to close gaps that allow people or companies to profit from government-issued licences and contracts without carrying out the work themselves. The Economy Ministry said such practices can increase project costs and reduce the intended economic benefits.

At present, selling or leasing licences through “Ali Baba” arrangements is not itself a criminal offence, although corruption and other related offences can already be prosecuted under existing laws. The review involves industry players, enforcement agencies, ministries, state governments and other stakeholders. The proposals will also require legal review and coordination before going to the National Development Planning Committee and Cabinet.

Rent seeking is a concept introduced by economist Gordon Tullock, referring to the pursuit of wealth without contributing to society’s overall productivity or well-being. Learn more here.

Biz
IHH eyes TPG’s Malaysian hospitals: IHH Healthcare is considering joining the race to buy TPG-backed hospital assets in Malaysia, with first-round bids expected by the end of Oct. The assets, held under Asia OneHealthcare, could be valued at around USD6 bil - USD8 bil (RM24.51 bil - RM32.68 bil). IHH would be competing with major investment firms including Blackstone, EQT, KKR and Warburg Pincus. TPG is also exploring a Kuala Lumpur listing for the Malaysian business. The potential IPO could raise as much as RM10 bil and become Malaysia’s biggest listing in more than a decade.

TPG and Hong Leong Group bought the business, previously known as Columbia Asia Healthcare, in 2019. Asia OneHealthcare also operates medical facilities in Indonesia and Vietnam. Other shareholders include the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Employees Provident Fund (EPF).

IHH is Malaysia’s fifth most-valuable public-listed company, with a market cap of RM70.5 bil (view rank here).

Zetrix fallout hits AmanahRaya funds: Three funds managed by AmanahRaya Investment Management (ARIM) have temporarily suspended subscriptions, redemptions and switching as liquidity pressure builds around investments linked to Zetrix AI. The affected funds are the AmanahRaya Syariah Trust Fund, AmanahRaya Syariah Income Fund and AmanahRaya Unit Trust Fund. ARIM said the suspension followed increased redemption requests and rising credit risk involving certain investments. It stressed that the move does not mean an issuer has defaulted or that losses have already been realised.

How big is the damage: The three funds are among the biggest holders of bonds issued by Zetrix AI (fka MyEG), which has a RM2 bil Islamic bond programme. ARIM previously confirmed that their combined holdings represent less than 30% of Zetrix AI’s outstanding bonds, putting the exposure at below RM600 mil but above RM500 mil. The pressure follows a sharp sell-off in Zetrix AI shares that wiped around RM5 bil from the company’s market value over the past month. Major shareholder TS Wong’s direct and indirect stake also fell to about 6.4% from 29.955% in Jul, although he remains the company’s largest shareholder. ARIM said the suspension gives it time to review liquidity and investment valuations without being forced to sell assets at steep discounts. It is also engaging with the issuer, sukuk trustee and fund trustees.

View the fund info here and here.

Shorts:

1. Selangor gets Oct 26 public holiday
   Selangor has declared Oct 26 a replacement public holiday for Sultan Sharafuddin Idris Shah’s Silver Jubilee celebrations. The main celebration falls on Sunday, Oct 25, marking 25 years of the Sultan’s reign. Monday, Oct 26, will therefore be a state holiday. The celebrations run from Sept 28 to Nov 1, with 20 official programmes covering community, religious, heritage, environmental and sporting activities.

2. Mini tornado hits Damansara
   A small landspout struck Damansara on Oct 13, with strong winds caught on video near a toll plaza. MetMalaysia said the mini tornado was triggered by active thunderstorm clouds and unstable, humid conditions during the monsoon transition period. These tornadoes are usually small, often measuring under 10 metres, and last only briefly, making them difficult to detect on radar or weather satellites. Watch a car literally getting blown by the tornado.
   Learn: Difference between landspout vs tornado

4. AROUND THE WORLD 🌎

The Great Haze Chokehold
Mad Max haze in Indonesia
“Witness ME!” If you know that scene from Mad Max. But that thick orange-brown haze in that universe has now returned to Indonesia’s Central Kalimantan. According to the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG), air quality in Palangka Raya, Central Kalimantan, remained hazardous on Wednesday morning, with fine particulate matter (PM2.5) concentrations reaching nearly five times the threshold for the agency’s highest pollution category. Despite ongoing firefighting efforts, the Forestry Ministry said that air quality remained a concern and that “very unhealthy to hazardous air quality continues to affect Central Kalimantan and several locations in South Kalimantan”.
As of Oct 11, the Health Ministry reported 277,075 cases of acute respiratory infections across 63 districts and cities in seven affected provinces. 62,400 cases involved children aged five and below. View Palangka Raya on map here.

Highest-level haze in Singapore
When your neighbour burns, you suffer the haze too. That’s how Singapore feels as the haze in Indonesia continues. The one-hour reading of the average concentration of fine particulate matter reached 288 in the west of Singapore. Levels of 251 and above are considered “very high”, while Singapore’s four other regions recorded “elevated” and “high” categories. This meant that Singapore’s air quality worsened to the highest category. Singapore, KL, and Medan (Indonesia) were the three most-polluted cities in the world, according to data from IQAir. In Malaysia, schools in Johor and Melaka were closed but are opening on Oct 15. In Singapore, the Ministry of Education judges school closures based on another air-quality measure - the 24-hour Pollution Standards Index. If the forecast for the next day reaches the highest category, “hazardous”, school closures will be considered. For now, the readings in all five regions were in the “unhealthy” range, the third level in the government’s five-step scale.

Indonesia says haze will be extinguished within a month
Bad or good news - Indonesian Environment Minister Jumhur Hidayat said that Indonesia expects to extinguish its forest fires within a month. He said that “the intensity is already starting to decrease”. However, he acknowledged that the firefighting efforts still face several hurdles, with poor visibility hampering the use of water-bombing helicopters. Indonesia is considering foreign help from Singapore and Malaysia and is ‘curating’ the proposals before deciding whether to accept them.

Meanwhile, Malaysian Deputy Prime Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi had spoken to President Prabowo about offering Malaysia’s help.
Indonesia’s Coordinating Ministry for Political and Security Affairs spokesman Honi Havana said that communication with Malaysia was ongoing and that “we have to discuss the operational requirements, how the personnel deployment and logistical support will work and so on”. Indonesia had previously accepted three CH-47 Chinook helicopters along with personnel and support equipment from Japan, as well as fire suppressant powder from Brazil.

Saudi spy? FBI charges OpenAI’s Saudi employee for planting recording device
US authorities have charged Abdulrahman Alfozan, a Saudi national and OpenAI employee since Jul 2025, for allegedly secretly planting a recording device in one of OpenAI’s offices in California. Apparently, OpenAI discovered a “sophisticated recording device” hidden in its San Francisco office and alerted the FBI; the device was wrapped in toilet paper and inserted into a USB port on the back of a TV in an executive conference room. OpenAI has since dismissed him. FBI Director Kash Patel said that the alleged goal was to capture information about OpenAI’s AI product.

OpenAI was able to use its AI models “to understand the device and where it had come from, identifying that a specific employee had planted it a few days earlier”. The suspect also used a “productivity tool” and a “chatbot” to research sensitive locations at OpenAI. On Oct 5, he allegedly returned to inspect the device in the room, and the FBI used CCTV camera footage to link him to the scene. Abdulrahman appeared in court on Tuesday, and if he is found guilty, he faces up to five years in prison and a fine of USD250,000 (RM1.02 mil).

Rwanda to host F1 Grand Prix in 2030
Formula 1 is returning to Africa after a decades-long absence (last race in 1993). Rwanda will be hosting the F1 Grand Prix in the early 2030s, near Kigali, for 10 years. Rwanda plans to build the circuit near Bugesera International Airport, 40km south of Kigali. The circuit will be designed by former Austrian motorsport driver Alex Wurz’s racetrack design firm and will stretch over 6 km with 17 corners and an anti-clockwise layout. This marked a multi-year effort by Rwanda, as its president announced the country’s bid to host a F1 Grand Prix in Dec 2024.

An F1 Grand Prix in Africa has received support from Lewis Hamilton, F1’s most successful driver with seven world titles and 106 Grand Prix wins. He said, “We need to have a Grand Prix in Africa” and has advocated for an F1 race in Africa for years.

Thought experiment: What if F1 were hosted….in Genting?

Shorts:

1. This Guizhou man thought this was a good idea
   A man in Guizhou, China, honestly thought this would work. Reportedly, he held his wedding with his legally registered wife downstairs while celebrating his baby’s 100th day upstairs in the same building with his ex-girlfriend. For convenience really? Apparently, both families had booked separate events without realising the connection until they crossed paths. And it happened on the same day. Hilariously, the same man was the guest of honour for both parties. A woman who was presumably the ex-girlfriend was carrying a baby and angrily shouting. This beats any Chinese AI micro-dramas out there.

2. Apple announces HomeView, a smart home device
   Apple is trying to control your whole house. It has announced HomeView, a new AI-powered hub that resides in your home and controls your connected home accessories. The device has a 7-inch Liquid Retina display that sits atop a domed speaker base and works with Siri AI. It can recognise up to six people and display personal content for the user in front of it, such as messages, calendar information and apps. It is priced at USD299 (RM1,221), with preorders opened now ahead of a Nov 13 launch.

5. FOR YOUR EYES 📺

1. SpaceX launch on Tuesday morning turned the sky into a beautiful, glowing ‘space jellyfish’ visible throughout the East Coast of US. NASA explains how this happened.

2. Continuing on the Lee Zii Jia family court drama. Crash course in business law. Tim Tiah explains why even owning 90% of the company, LZJ still has issues controlling the company.

3. Crash course on the art of chocolate-ing and why Malaysian cocoa terbaek.