6b Amanah Saham 1 Malaysia units still available

KUALA LUMPUR, March 22 — Six billion Amanah Saham 1 Malaysia (AS1M) units are still available for public subscription, to date.

Permodalan Nasional Bhd (PNB) president and group chief executive Tan Sri Hamad Kama Piah Che Othman said the Bumiputera and Indian quota made up the bulk of the remaining portion.

Saying that the subscription pace had not changed much since ASM1 was launched in July last year, he said the take-up rate was the fastest among the Chinese.

“Only eight per cent or 238 million units of the three billion units allocated for the Chinese community is still available,” he told reporters after announcing the income distribution for Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) here today.

He said the equity income fund enjoyed brisk sale among the Chinese community as not many funds offered by PNB are open to non-Bumiputeras.

“Many people are still waiting for the maiden dividend to be announced. They want to compare with other funds, under PNB, to determine if the returns from AS1M are as attractive as other unit trusts,” he said.

Hamad Kama Piah said Bumiputeras are more comfortable investing in Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) and Amanah Saham Didik.

The AS1M, a fixed price fund of RM1 per unit, is open to all Malaysians with 50 per cent allocated to Bumiputeras, 30 per cent Chinese, 15 per cent Indians and other races, five per cent.

The fund is the fifth launched by PNB after the ASB, ASM, Amanah Saham Didik and Amanah Saham Wawasan 2020. — Bernama