Citigroup partners with InvestPenang to make state an ‘intelligence’ hub: GEORGE TOWN, Sept 10 — Leading global bank Citigroup is lending its expertise in finance to InvestPenang in a joint bid to promote the state as a strategic hub for “intelligence services” that include business processes, financial and professional services. InvestPenang is aiming to turn Penang into a hub for multinational companies (MNCs) to base their treasury, financial, procurement, operations and professional services here. “We want to encourage more MNCs and international corporations to base the intelligence part of their business processes here,” said InvestPenang director Daruk Lee Kah Choon. The MNCs could base these services here to support their global operations even if their plants are located elsewhere, he said. Just like some international corporations have their headquarters in Singapore while their operations are based in Malaysia, Lee said other international companies could place their intelligence services here to support their operations elsewhere. Intelligence services include financial services and also professional services like accountancy, law, architecture and engineering. Currently, about 20 MNCs have based their business processes here in Penang and this includes large corporations such as Dell, Intel, Alterra, AMD, Motorola and Citigroup. Citigroup was one of the first international corporations to base its regional centre for trade in Penang more than 20 years ago. Now, the Citigroup centre in Penang is its largest regional trade and cash processing centre where it handles some 20 million transactions with a throughput of around US$5.8 trillion (RM19 trillion) annually. In July it opened its second premise in Bayan Baru as part of the expansion of its financial services in Malaysia. Citigroup managing director Noel Saminathan said the finance group is sharing its expertise in setting up a trade and cash processing centre here as part of its co-operation with InvestPenang to attract more MNCs and corporations to set up their business process operations here. “We want to assist other companies that are interested in setting up their own treasury management centre here,” he said in a press conference after a treasury and finance forum entitled “Emerging Trends of the Technology Industry” at E & O Hotel here. dlvr.it/3xRJDY
Posted on: Tue, 10 Sep 2013 10:54:51 +0000
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