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Chief Executive Officer | ModulEight Technologies Sdn Bhd
Director, Digital Finance and Islamic Digital Economy | Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation Sdn Bhd (MDEC)
Ruslena Ramli is an Islamic Finance advocate with 20+ years of experience. Her banking repertoire include corporate strategy, advising on sukuk/bond issuances, as well as development of Islamic banking products. She is an avid speaker in local and international Islamic Finance conferences.
She brings to MDEC her expertise in Shariah-compliant structures and established relationships with Islamic finance communities locally and aboard. Ruslena holds a BA (Honors) in Accounting and Finance from Middlesex University of London and a Master’s Degree in Islamic Finance from International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance (INCEIF).
Managing Partner | RHL Ventures
Raja Hamzah is Co-Founder and Co-Managing Partner of RHL Ventures. RHL Ventures is a Southeast Asian-based private investment firm that focuses on growth capital investments in the Southeast Asia and US region. Hamzah brings his vast experience in various investment roles to advise companies and startups in Malaysia and Southeast Asia.
Prior to founding RHL Ventures, Raja Hamzah was a Director in Rasma Corporation, a boutique mechanical and electrical engineering services firm based in Malaysia, focusing on infrastructure projects including railroads, stadiums and hospitals. He focused on building and developing partnerships with government-linked companies, listed and private corporates and local authorities, and helped the company secure cornerstone projects for the national stadium and national rail projects.
Prior to Rasma, Raja Hamzah was a Principal Investment Analyst with Guoco Management Company, a multi-billion US-dollar fund based out of Hong Kong. He used a fundamental, bottom up approach to investing, focusing on listed equities, IPO and pre-IPO investment opportunities across Asia and the U.S. He was also a Senior Analyst in the institutional coverage team of Goldman Sachs Asset Management based out of Singapore. GSAM has more than USD1 trillion dollars of assets under management There, he worked extensively with various institutional funds across Southeast Asia, recommending investments across private equity, hedge fund and other asset classes for clients which include Temasek, GIC, Bank Indonesia, the Employees Provident Fund of Malaysia and Khazanah Nasional.
Raja Hamzah graduated from the University of Warwick, UK with a first-class honours degree in Accounting and Finance. He was awarded as one of the ‘Top 50 people who are redefining the way we live’ by the Singapore Straits Times in 2018, ‘Top 40 under 40’ by Prestige Magazine in 2017, and was shortlisted as a Young Fellow of the World Islamic Economic Forum in 2019 and one of the leaders in the Malaysian tech space as part of the 2020/2021 batch of Digerati50 by Digital News Asia and Maxis. Hamzah is also one of the mentors for Endeavor’s Scale up Program, a global NGO that supports entrepreneurs with potential for economic and social impact in their regions. Hamzah is currently an Exco member of the Malaysian Manufacturer’s Association, focusing on mentoring young companies. Hamzah is also on the Board of Advisors of Indonesia-based Alami, a P2P financing company focused on Shariah compliant loans and economic empowerment for small and medium sized enterprises in Indonesia.
Chief Executive Officer | pitchIn
Sam is the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of pitchIN. pitchIN is a registered Recognised Market Operator (RMO) that offers an Equity Crowdfunding (ECF) platform. pitchIN is also the 1st ECF platform to receive approval to launch a Secondary Market and also one of the two platforms given the approval to launch an Initial Exchange Offering (IEO) platform in Malaysia. pitchIN is also the 2nd ECF platform to be approved by the Securities Commission to list Shariah compliant companies on their platform.
Sam also co-founded WatchTower and Friends (WTF) Sdn Bhd, an accelerator of technology startups. WTF Accelerator opened its 1st batch of startups in January 2015 and has invested in more than 50 early-stage startups such as TheLorry, MoneyMatch, MyCash Online, PostCo, Runningman, Lapasar, iConstruct, Bereev, Ejen2U, Pomen, AdvanxHealth, Herepay to name a few.
Sam is legally trained having graduated from UKM’s Law Faculty and have served as a Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) in the Attorney-General Chambers as well as stints at the Securities Commission (SC) and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC).
Sam is also the founding committee member of the Malaysian Business Angel Network (MBAN).
Country Head | Funding Societies Malaysia
Director | Artem Ventures
Sai Kit has extensive experience in audit, corporate finance, corporate development, and venture building and investments across various industries, including manufacturing, property development, hospitality, financial services, enterprise software, and digital advertising. He set up the corporate venture investment arm of an SGX-listed company, which has made 18 multi-stage investments in Southeast Asia, with three successful exits to date, including two in 2022. Additionally, he founded Artem Ventures, a venture capital management corporation registered with the Securities Commission of Malaysia, which manages TIM Ventures, an insurtech and Islamic fintech fund created in partnership with FWD.
Recently, Artem Ventures launched a fund aimed at investing in sustainable solutions to address the needs of tomorrow's consumers, including sustainable food to improve food security, replacing synthetic and high-emission materials for everyday products, improving air quality, addressing climate change with sustainable energy and transportation, and promoting responsible consumption with natural and sustainable alternatives.
Sai Kit presently serves as Vice Chairman of the Malaysia Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (2022/2023) and mentors at Endeavour Malaysia, Founder Institute, Startup Weekend, Thought For Food, SITEC, PitchIN and ScaleUp Malaysia. He is also a member of the advisory board and mentor of the impact ventures network within Malaysia’s Impact Circle, an independent agri-food tech ecosystem builder and multiplier which does impact works on the Southeast Asia food ecosystem and supply chain.
Senior Director | SME Corp Malaysia
Chai obtained Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Putra Business School, UPM Malaysia specialisation in Corporate Governance with MAICSA Graduateship (The Malaysian Institute of Chartered Secretaries & Administrators).
He is also qualified with a Mechanical Engineering bachelor’s degree (Hons) from the same university, Universiti Putra Malaysia and gained operating experience while working for private companies involve in metal products manufacturing, construction, engineering projects, Air Conditioning & Mechanical Ventilation (ACMV) and building facilities maintenance.
At SME Corp since 2006, he is directly involved in diverse financial and technological support development programmes for Malaysian SMEs from various levels. He is also the winner of Chairman’s Award that leads to successful admittance to the Leading Change and Organizational Renewal Program (LCOR) at Stanford Business School in 2013. Awarded the Best Business Counsellor and Best Business Counsellor Trainer by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) enable Chai to be appointed as the Head Business Counsellor providing effective advisory to help nurture competitive, innovative and resilient SMEs in Malaysia.
Previously in Business Advisory & Support Division, Business Development & Entrepreneurship Division, Implementation & Monitoring Division, Corporate Management Division, Strategic Transformation Unit, and International Cooperation Secretariat, Chai involves in charting strategic direction of the organisation, leading change and organisational renewal activities, SMEs business integration such as capability & capacity building, technology collaboration/transfer, alternative financing and investment capitalisation, business linkages between SMEs and large corporations in targeted sectors such as Aerospace, Oil & Gas, Medical Devices, Rail System, Business Matching, Market Access and Internationalisation are being performed to enhanced Malaysian businesses.
Currently, as the Senior Director of Programme Coordination Division, Chai is responsible in coordinating the implementation of development programmes for SMEs across all related Ministries and agencies, central point of reference and data dissemination on SMEs and entrepreneurs, as well as providing business advisory services to SMEs and entrepreneurs. Focus on coordinates, streamlines, monitors and evaluates the progress and effectiveness of SME development programmes throughout the country.
Chief Executive Officer | Selangor Information Technology & Digital Economy Corporation (SIDEC)
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Chief Executive Officer | Crowde
Yohanes is an agropreneur with a dream to simplify the complex life of farmers. He has been in the industry for as long as he remembers. The Business Commerce Bachelor from Prasetiya Mulya University was inspired by a university’s community development program in which he was exposed to a million problems the smallholder farmers face daily. By 2016, he got a professional development certificate for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at Stanford University and started his agribusiness.
Yohanes started the journey to founding CROWDE after working as a farmer, planting chilies and mushrooms in Bogor area, and moving on to poultry farming a few years later. He enjoyed every aspect of it and has had a passion for agriculture ever since. However, he learned the hard way that the result of farming on his personal finances was not as pleasant as the process of farming itself.
After going bankrupt, he realized that farmers in Indonesia are in desperate need of help. It made no sense that in Indonesia, an agrarian nation whose growth depends on the agricultural sector, so many farmers live below the line. So Yohanes decided, along with his dear friend, Risyad, to build CROWDE in order to revolutionize the agricultural sector in Indonesia. Today, CROWDE reaches more than 17,000 farmers with the help of more than 31,000 personal lenders and has collaborated with five major institutional lenders.
Along the way, Yohanes has been awarded 30 Under 30 of Forbes Asia 2018 for his contribution in Social Entrepreneur category and 40 Under 40 of Markplus.Inc 2018.
Chief Executive Officer and Co-founder | AgriData Portal Sdn Bhd
Matthew Johnny Kulai's journey from a small-town farm to becoming the CEO and co-founder of Agridata is a story of innovation, determination, and resilience. Despite facing setbacks in his family farm business, he revolutionized agriculture in Sabah through technology and collaboration.
Born and raised in Keningau, a small town in Sabah, Matthew Johnny Kulai spent his formative years growing up on his family's farm. Surrounded by avocado, durian, and other cash crops, he developed a deep connection to the land and a passion for agriculture from a young age. This rural upbringing would later serve as the foundation for his revolutionary ideas in agribusiness.
When it came time to pursue higher education, Matthew chose to follow a different passion: sports materials engineering in Swansea University. However, during his second year of study, he realized the untapped potential of agriculture in Sabah. With vast underutilized land and a growing need for modern farming methods, Matthew saw an opportunity to make a difference in his home region.
Emboldened by his newfound vision, Matthew decided to turn his family's 20-acre farm from a hobby into a business. Facing numerous challenges as a farmer, he quickly realized that the key to success lay in collaboration and innovation. This realization led him to connect with other young agropreneurs in Sabah, and together they began to formulate a solution.
At the age of 22, Matthew co-founded Agridata, a company dedicated to serving the underserved agriculture community in Sabah. Through hard work and persistence, Agridata entered and won the MyHackathon 2020, earning a grand prize of RM250,000. This victory marked the beginning of Agridata's journey towards transforming agriculture in the region.
After the success at MyHackathon 2020, Agridata's momentum continued to grow. The following year, under Matthew's leadership, the company was selected for Petronas Future Tech 2.0. This prestigious recognition further solidified Agridata's position as a pioneer in the world of agriculture technology in the region.
To this day, Agridata remains committed to serving the underserved agriculture community in Malaysia. Through Matthew's vision and determination, Agridata has introduced modern farming methods and provided support to countless farmers, helping them achieve greater success and sustainability.
Melissa has a wealth of over 25 years of APAC regional experience in international trade, brand communications, market research, organisational development, social strategy, corporate and internal communications. She previously worked with various large organisations such as HSBC, IOI Group, KL Sentral (MRCB), and TNS (Kantar) where she was responsible for multiple portfolios covering 33 countries. She was the CEO of Asian Strategy & Leadership Institute (ASLI), a non-partisan think tank governed and owned by the Jeffrey Cheah Foundation. She founded ASLI International Trade & Business Advisory Centre. She was instrumental in the setting up of the Malaysia-Bahrain Business Council and Malaysia-Russia Business Council. Melissa was attached to the Bahrain Economic Development Board (FDIs), INVEST Hong Kong (FDIs), and UK Department of Trade (DIT) based out of Bristol, UK responsible for business ventures of 45 UK companies in Southeast Asia.
Presently, Melissa is the Group Chief Officer of Impact Circle, an independent Agrifoodtech Ecosystem builder and multiplier with a purpose and impact mission to connect investment and power collaborations within the Southeast Asia food ecosystem and supply chain to catalyze profitable innovation, expand sustainability and environmental awareness, and bring greater impact on food and nutrition security as well as for youth empowerment and community development focusing on women and children. She is also the Thought for Food Regional CEO of Southeast Asia, with a mission to unlock the potential of the next generations to lead a sustainable food revolution through the development of cutting-edge, locally-relevant, science and technology-based entrepreneurial solutions.
Melissa received the Distinguished Australian Alumni Award in December 2019. She holds an MBA from the University of Sunshine Coast, Australia, and is a strong and passionate advocate of workplace gender equality, women empowerment, and women’s inclusion agenda.
