Kuala Lumpur: The Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector (ICD) has increased its stake in PMB Tijari Sdn. Bhd. (PMB Tijari) to 33 percent in an effort to expand its Shariah leasing business in the country. PMB Tijari is a Shariah financial services business wing that was acquired by Pelaburan MARA Berhad (PMB) in January, previously known as KFH Ijarah House (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd.

Nazim Rahman, Group CEO of PMB, stated that when PMB Tijari was first acquired early last year, ICD’s stake was 10 percent.

“This increase in equity reflects ICD’s confidence in the success to be achieved through this partnership, as well as the economic growth of Malaysia, considering that PMB Tijari’s success as a financial services company is closely linked to the growth of the private sector in Malaysia. The institutional support provided by PMB and ICD enables PMB Tijari to expand beyond the local market, and we hope to leverage the resources of both parties to achieve this objective,” he said in a statement here yesterday.

ICD, based in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is part of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) Group, which offers various Shariah-based financial products to its member countries. The institution also provides financing to meet the needs of its clients through the subscription or purchase of shares or bonds in competitive and potential projects or companies in member countries.

Earlier, PMB and ICD signed a shareholders’ agreement for PMB Tijari at the conclusion of the IDB Group Board of Governors Annual Meeting in Jeddah recently. During the signing ceremony, ICD was led by its CEO, Khaled Al-Aboodi.