By Chan Quan Min
Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary, Malaysia’s eighth richest man according to Forbes, this month completed the purchase of The Malaysian Reserve financial daily, staff at the newspaper were informed.
A journalist at The Malaysian Reserve told KiniBiz an official announcement of the Syed Mokhtar takeover was made internally earlier this month, confirming rumours that have been circulating for close to half a year now.
Highly placed sources also confirmed the sale but declined to be identified as they were too close to the deal. It was not able to ascertain the price immediately.
Under the deal, which has not been made public as yet, Malaysian Reserve publisher SHP Media, formerly Syed Hussain Publications agreed to sell their stake in the newspaper to an as yet unnamed company controlled by Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary.
Unverified reports claim Syed Mokhtar, via his investment vehicle could have up to 91% stake in the paper. The amount paid for the newspaper is not known.
According to a former employee, The Malaysian Reserve has experienced intermittent cash-flow problems which has on several occasions caused staff salaries to be paid late.
One journalist currently working at the newspaper said he was relieved to learn The Malaysian Reserve would now be bankrolled by a billionaire, thus ensuring its financial security.
Siew Ka Wei
In September 2013, Siew Ka Wei the managing director and owner of the Redbery group denied early rumours of the sale of the Malaysian Reserve to Syed Mokhtar. When contacted today, he refused comment on the matter.
The Malaysian Reserve joins other businesses in his sprawling empire in seaports, electricity generation, construction, automotive manufacturing, banking and utilities.
Through his indirect stake in MPH Group Malaysia Sdn Bhd, Syed Mokhtar has long had a foothold in the local publishing industry. MPH is a book retailer, publisher and retailer.
Syed Mokhtar’s purchase of the Malaysian Reserve fulfils the Umno-linked businessman’s ambitions to control a daily publication without resorting to a lengthy approval process new publications have to go through to obtain a publishing licence.
The Printing Presses and Publications Act of 1984 requires newspapers to be licensed under from the Home Ministry
In recent years, publication licences have become increasingly difficult to obtain. Just last week, FZ.com, an online news portal, was told their recently granted publishing licence now revoked.
In December the Home Ministry suspended their permit for The Heat. The licence has since been reinstated.
Tight controls on the Malaysian media is not restricted to print. Radio broadcasting is also closely watched and regulated by the government.
Last week, radio station BFM was denied permission to air an interview with opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim.
Also last week, Malaysia’s press freedom ranking slipped on the Reporters Without Borders to 147th place.
The Malaysian Reserve made its debut on newsstands in May 2007. SHP Media is the named publisher for The Malaysian Reserve while marketing and subscription activity was under the direct control of the Redberry group. Effective control of the Malaysian Reserve rested with the CEO, Syed Mohamed Fazilla Syed Hussain, who has family ties to SHP.
The Malaysian Reserve’s weekly pullout, Unreserved, was not part of the sale. It is understood that the lifestyle pullout retained by the Redberry Group has an advertising and sponsorship agreement with Maybank worth in millions of ringgit.
Daily editions of The Malaysian Reserve are packaged along with the International New York Times, formerly International Herald Tribune.
KiniBiz articles were syndicated on the Malaysian Reserve until a few months ago. The syndication agreement was not renewed presumably on account of a change in management direction at the newspaper
Malaysia Reserve has daily circulation of 10,000 copies, according to company provided data. Its closest competitor, the Edge Financial Daily has a daily circulation of approximately 15,000 copies.
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