Malaysia has around 1,800 government-linked companies with no single law governing how they're run, relying instead on a "patchwork" of statutes and directives. A State-Owned Enterprises Act was flagged last year but never made it into Budget 2026, even as neighbours like Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam push ahead with SOE reform. Alissa Rode and Ng Chien Chern of IDEAS tell us why this matters, using the recent RM10 billion Tabung Haji bailout as a case in point, and what it means for the business community.

<p>Malaysia has around 1,800 government-linked companies with no single law governing how they're run, relying instead on a "patchwork" of statutes and directives. A State-Owned Enterprises Act was flagged last year but never made it into Budget 2026, even as neighbours like Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam push ahead with SOE reform. Alissa Rode and Ng Chien Chern of IDEAS tell us why this matters, using the recent RM10 billion Tabung Haji bailout as a case in point, and what it means for the business community.</p>

Helping you navigate the ever-changing universe of business, from headlines to the bottom line

<p>Helping you navigate the ever-changing universe of business, from headlines to the bottom line</p>