GEORGE TOWN, Oct 30 — The Penang government hopes to establish the proposed Penang Technology Finance Centre (PTFC) within a year, Penang Chief Minister Chow Kon Yeow told the state legislative assembly today.
“Initially, we said we wanted to see this realised within two years. Some people felt that was too long and asked us to shorten the timeframe to one year.
“We will try, and we will need close support and cooperation from the federal agencies,” he told the state legislative assembly when replying to a supplementary question by Bukit Tengah assemblyman Gooi Hsiao-Leung.
He said the state will also need to establish an implementation office for the PTFC to bring together resources in Penang and work with other stakeholders.
“We cannot simply wait for the federal government, sometimes we need to take the initiative and show that we are serious about this,” he said.
Chow said the state initially set out to establish a Penang International Financial Centre (PIFC) but after discussions with stakeholders and with the Finance Ministry, the state decided to build on its strength as the country’s technology hub.
“The White Paper we submitted takes this change and development into account. We formally asked the federal government to agree to the establishment of the Penang Technology Finance Centre, as set out in the White Paper,” he said.
Chow said he was surprised when the finance minister, who is also the Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, announced in the 2027 Budget that Penang had been designated as the country’s financial technology centre.
“We see this as an enhancement of our proposal. What we had put forward as a regional centre could now be recognised as having a larger, national role,” he said.
He said the country already has several financial centres, including in Labuan and Kuala Lumpur, so the state’s proposal should have criteria that distinguish it from conventional financial centres.
He said a technology finance centre will be able to strengthen the state’s technology ecosystem.
“We want to strengthen them into an integrated finance and investment ecosystem that can mobilise capital, financial services and innovative financial solutions,” he said.
He said this has the potential to accelerate technology development in Penang and the northern region, and eventually across the country, in line with national initiatives such as the National Semiconductor Strategy and the New Industrial Master Plan (NIMP).
Chow said after the announcement in Parliament, parties from other countries have already shown interest and see an opportunity to bring in funding to participate in the development of the technology sector in the state.
“This would bring wider benefits to the economy and the state’s development, with spillover effects for the people, existing SMEs, start-ups and our universities, which are actively conducting research and development,” he said.
Gooi had also asked if the White Paper, including the Strategic Blueprint and Action Plan that is being prepared, can be presented to all state assembly members so that they can give their views and suggestions on the plan.
“Once the Strategic Blueprint and Action Plan are ready, we will invite all assembly members and present them to you,” Chow replied.
He also said the state hoped to finalise the governance arrangements for a RM100 million strategic fund involving Khazanah and InvestPenang by year end.
He said SMEs in the semiconductor and E&E sectors had already expressed interest in accessing the fund.
“This is a small fund, but it is a start and an injection of confidence into what we are trying to achieve,” he said.
