Ng Chze How, CEO, RHBAM
The investment landscape in Asia has never been more complex. Rising interest rates, shifting regulations, and the growing weight of ESG considerations are reshaping the way both institutions and individuals approach wealth management. Traditional asset management models that once relied on market cycles and product performance are no longer sufficient on their own. What investors now need is a partner that can balance growth with resilience, opportunity with responsibility, and innovation with trust. This is where RHB Asset Management (RHBAM), one of Malaysia’s largest asset management firms and a wholly-owned subsidiary of RHB Investment Bank Berhad, has built its foundation.
With assets under management of RM56 billion as at June 2025, RHBAM leverages its strong people capabilities — over 220 seasoned fund managers, product specialists, and support functions with proven expertise to effectively manage funds and design award-winning investment solutions tailored to diverse client needs. This scale, combined with deep market knowledge, enables the firm to deliver consistent performance while innovating across its product shelf. Behind the firm’s resilience and growth story is a leadership team that brings together expertise, market insight, and operational discipline to consistently drive results. As part of this strategic team, Ng Chze How, CEO of RHBAM, plays a key role in steering these efforts — helping translate the Group’s strategic priorities into practical outcomes that create lasting value for clients and stakeholders. Alongside him, Mohd Najman bin Md Isa, CEO of RHB Islamic International Asset Management, strengthens the firm’s capabilities in Shariah-compliant investments, ensuring that both conventional and Islamic strategies are aligned with client needs across ASEAN.
RHBAM: A Strategic Pillar of RHB Group
Established in 1989 and licensed by the Securities Commission Malaysia, RHBAM has built its reputation on offering a wide spectrum of investment solutions. Its portfolio spans unit trusts, private retirement schemes, and customised mandates across local, Asian, and global markets, with products ranging from equity and fixed income to mixed assets and Shariah-compliant funds. Together with its Islamic subsidiary, RHB Islamic International Asset Management (RHBIIAM), the firm serves a diverse client base that includes retail investors, institutions, pension funds, and government-linked entities.
As part of RHB Banking Group — a financial services provider with a presence in seven ASEAN countries — RHBAM contributes directly to the Group’s mission of long-term value creation. Its vision is clear: to help clients achieve their investment goals while positioning the Group as a market leader in sustainable and client-focused asset management. By integrating ESG principles, delivering tailored products, and expanding its footprint across ASEAN, RHBAM continues to strengthen its position as a strategic pillar within the Group, contributing to long-term value for clients and stakeholders alike.
ESG, Innovation, and Client Relevance
For RHBAM, innovation and ESG integration are not optional — they are fundamental to how the firm positions itself in the market. Today, the company offers a diverse range of ESG-driven funds, including the RHB Sustainable Global Thematic Fund, RHB Asia Sustainable Leaders Fund, RHB Climate Change Solutions Fund, and the RHB ESG Multi-Asset Fund, among others. These strategies provide investors with opportunities to participate in global megatrends while aligning their portfolios with sustainability goals.
The Group’s sustainability framework, which outlines commitments across three pillars—sustainable and responsible banking, embedding good practices, and enriching and empowering communities—guides RHBAM’s own ESG journey. From sustainable financing and responsible procurement to environmental stewardship and financial education, these principles increasingly shape the company’s product innovation and client solutions. This commitment has not gone unnoticed. The firm’s achievements, including multiple LSEG Lipper awards across asset categories, highlight both its performance excellence and its agility in a fast-changing market. At the Alpha Southeast Asia 16th Fund Management Awards 2025, RHBAM was recognized as Best Overall Asset & Fund Manager, awarded for Best Risk-Adjusted Returns for ESG Principle Investments, and honored in alternative and income-oriented fund categories. Its offerings, particularly ESG-focused funds, have consistently delivered strong risk-adjusted performance, reflecting the firm’s dedication to sustainable investing.
The firm is set to expand its Shariah-compliant offerings to strengthen its Islamic wealth management capabilities. Its upcoming projects, such as RHB Sukuk Dana Haneef – Series 5 and the RHB i-Global Dividend Fund, will complement its existing solutions and offer clients broader access to faith-based investment opportunities. These initiatives reflect RHBAM’s wider commitment to growth and responsible investing.
Charting the Next Phase of Growth with PROGRESS27
Building on the momentum from its previous strategy, Together We Progress 2024 (TWP24), RHB is now entering its next phase of growth with PROGRESS27. This revitalised ambition sets RHB to deliver service excellence, profitability, and continue to be a responsible and purposeful financial services group. The strategy is anchored in clear targets — achieving a return on equity of 12%, reducing the cost-to-income ratio below 44.8%, and maintaining the gross impaired loan ratio under 1.3% — reflecting a firm commitment to financial resilience and operational efficiency.
To bring these goals to life, RHB has laid out eight transformational programmes, covering domestic balance sheet growth, retail and wholesale income expansion, cost optimisation, digitalisation, and ESG integration. Together, these initiatives aim to strengthen the Group’s relevance in a rapidly changing financial landscape while creating sustainable value for clients, employees, and communities. PROGRESS27 rests on three strategic pillars: Best in Service, High Profitability, and Responsible & Purposeful.
It focuses on delivering seamless, faster, and more engaging customer experiences, backed by enhanced digital journeys and data-driven insights. High Profitability emphasises revenue growth, operational efficiency, and cost optimisation. Responsible & Purposeful underlines RHB’s ongoing commitment to ethical, sustainable practices and meaningful impact in the communities it serves. Through these measures, RHB aims to solidify its position as a trusted regional financial services provider, creating long-term value for clients, shareholders, and communities alike.
RHB’s Brand Promise: “Together We Progress”
For more than a century, RHB has played a central role in helping individuals, businesses, and communities move forward, building a reputation not only as a financial institution but as a trusted partner in progress. This long history has given the Group a deep understanding of the challenges and aspirations that shape people’s lives, allowing it to design solutions that are responsive, forward-looking, and built on genuine insight. Today, with a strong presence in Malaysia and across seven ASEAN markets, RHB continues to expand its reach while staying firmly rooted in the values that have guided its journey.
Central to this journey is a commitment to innovation and constant improvement — ensuring that products and services go beyond transactions to deliver real value and measurable impact. The Group also recognises the importance of preparing the next generation, placing emphasis on initiatives that empower young people through education, financial literacy, and sustainable programs that equip them for the future. This holistic approach is encapsulated in RHB’s brand promise, “Together We Progress” — a statement that reflects the belief that progress is most meaningful when it is shared, inclusive, and sustainable.
Leadership as a Shared Strength
Leadership at RHBAM is not seen as the responsibility of one individual but as a collective strength built on collaboration, resilience, and accountability. The Board of Directors plays an active role in setting strategy and oversight, meeting quarterly to review business performance, investment activities, compliance, and risk management. This governance structure ensures that decisions are made with clarity and in alignment with the Group’s broader objectives. Within this framework, Ng works closely with the senior management team and the wider Group leadership to ensure RHBAM’s direction remains consistent with PROGRESS27. He focuses on strengthening the collaboration, connecting the firm’s operational priorities with the Group’s strategic ambitions in ESG, regional growth, and client-centric innovation. As he often emphasises, trust is the currency that underpins every relationship—with clients, employees, or partners—and it is earned over time through consistent delivery and shared success.“Client relevance is not optional—it’s foundational. That is why we continuously review our offerings, enhance flagship funds, and work with global partners to introduce differentiated opportunities that meet both immediate investor needs and long-term priorities,” adds Ng.
Building for the Future
Looking forward, RHBAM aims to deepen its role as a driver of the Group’s growth by expanding its ASEAN footprint, scaling its client solutions, and further weaving sustainability into its strategies. The eight transformational programmes under PROGRESS27—ranging from promoting domestic CASA growth to scaling digital technology—will serve as levers to accelerate this ambition. For RHBAM, these priorities translate into concrete initiatives: expanding regional mandates, growing retirement solutions, launching differentiated Shariah-compliant products, and continuing to innovate in ESG-driven funds.
Ng Chze How and the leadership team remain committed to this shared vision. Their focus is on collective impact — building an organisation where progress is measured not only in returns but in resilience, responsibility, and relevance. For RHB Asset Management and for RHB Group as a whole, the goal is simple yet ambitious: to move forward together, ensuring that every step of growth reflects the promise of “Together We Progress.”