TH chairman Tan Sri Abdul Rashid Hussain outlined his vision for the institution's long-term financial sustainability with a proposed revision of the Tabung Haji Act 1995 (Act 535). [The details in the Business Times report reproduced at end of this posting.]
He is suggesting reforms to align with TH's operation by strengthening its depositor base, improving cost-of-funds management, and regulatory safeguards for long-term investments. The gist of his transformation is to turn TH from a syariah-based savings institution into a full fledged Islamic investment company.
Naturally it is appealing to bankers conversant with such terms as asset-liability mismatch, cost of fund and pursuit for "competitive" return. And there is a professor fascinated with digitalisation, and AI to the prospect of investment in Bitcoins and Stablecoins. But it is not unique.
Rashid is duplicating the path as a former securities salesman from Singapore who established RHB through the rapid growth of acquiring D&C and Kwong Yik Banks. He made the aggresive move to script lent Khazanah's shares to Julian Robertson's Tiger Fund. They short sell Malaysia and led him to lose RHB. Had it not for his former father-in-law, he could have been imprisoned.
TH is his second attempt at self-actualisation at the late age of 78 for another institution building, but his reform carries the risks that could deny pilgrims to enable them to perform their spiritual obligation from their hard-earned savings. Obviously he failed to learn the lesson from his past ordeals.
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