Tengku Zafrul Aziz
Tengku Zafrul bin Tengku Abdul Aziz is a Malaysian banker, investor, and corporate figure currently serving as the Minister of Finance of Malaysia since March 2020. Previously, he was the Group Chief Executive Officer /Executive Director of CIMB Group Holdings Berhad, a leading ASEAN universal bank and a world leader in Islamic finance. He also formerly the Chief Executive Officer /Executive Director of CIMB Bank Berhad and President Commissioner of PT Bank CIMB Niaga Tbk.
Outside of CIMB, Zafrul is currently a member of the , representing Malaysia in promoting intra-trade and collaboration within Asia Pacific. He currently sits on the Board of the National Sports Council of Malaysia, in addition to being a Trustee of the Perdana Leadership Foundation and a member of the National Higher Education Entrepreneurship Council under the Ministry of Education. He is also an Honorary Commander of the Navy Volunteer Reserve under the Royal Malaysian Navy.
He was appointed in Muhyiddin's cabinet as the Minister of Finance on 9 March 2020.
Early life
Tengku Zafrul was born on 25 June 1973 and is the eldest of four siblings. His mother, Raja Datuk Zaharaton Raja Zainal Abidin, is the former Director-General of the Economic Planning Unit of the Prime Minister's Department of Malaysia, and his father, Tengku Abdul Aziz Tengku Harris, is a businessman. He is married to Raja Datin Sri Johanna Raja Arshad, the great granddaughter to the fifth Sultan of Selangor, Sulaiman of Selangor. The couple has four children.From an educational background, Tengku Zafrul began his early education at Sri Petaling Primary School and Bukit Bintang Primary School. He continued his study at Malay College Kuala Kangsar and then studied A-Level at Sherborne School, Dorset, United Kingdom. He graduated from the University of Bristol, UK with a Bachelor of Science Economics and Accounting, and obtained a Master of Arts in Finance and Management from the University of Exeter, UK. From the year 2017 to 2019, Tengku Zafrul completed his second Master's degree in Business Administration at Tsinghua University PBCSF, a world-class financial education institution and a leading center of financial research. He is also a Fellow Chartered Banker with the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers.
Since his school days, Tengku Zafrul was interested in sports such as hockey and ran for recreation. During his first year at the University of Bristol, his main transportation was by bicycle. His interests include keeping fit through running, cycling and swimming, and developing the youth through his participation in various organizations such as the Kalsom Movement and Teach for Malaysia. He has completed all six marathons under the Abbott World Marathon Majors. He is also a fan of the football club, Liverpool F.C., which plays in the English Premier League as well as veteran football players such as Ian Rush.
Career history
Corporate career
Zafrul started out as a corporate finance executive in AmInvestment Bank in 1996. He then joined Crédit Agricole as an investment analyst, moving up to Director within a few years. Succeeding this, he became the Advisor to the President of Tenaga Nasional Berhad. Zafrul then joined , after which he was appointed as Group Managing Director of Avenue Capital Resources, a listed company specialising in financial services i.e. investment banking and fund management. He was also Chief Executive Officer of Avenue Securities and the Chairman of Avenue Asset Management. Zafrul then went on to become the Head of Investment Banking for Citigroup Malaysia.He is also the main investor behind Tune Money Sdn Bhd, Asia’s first "no-frills" online financial service provider as well as its CEO and substantial shareholder. Following that, Zafrul was appointed as Group Director of Kenanga Holdings Berhad and Director of Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad. Prior to assuming his most recent role with CIMB, Zafrul was the Chief Executive Officer of Maybank Investment Bank, the fully-owned investment banking arm of Malayan Banking Berhad, Malaysia's flagship financial services player. The acquisition of Kim Eng Holdings Limited by the Maybank Group in 2011 resulted in the combined entity of Maybank IB and Kim Eng, known regionally as Maybank Kim Eng, of which Zafrul was also CEO. On 9 March 2020, Tengku Zafrul announced his resignation as CIMB Group Chief Executive Officer before being appointed Minister of Finance.
Ministry of Finance
On 9 March 2020, Tengku Zafrul was appointed in Muhyiddin's cabinet as Minister of Finance. He embarked on a difficult task to assist the people and industry in the implementation of the Prihatin Rakyat Economic Stimulus Package during the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. Tengku Zafrul also explains the economic recovery plan will be announced after Aidilfitri to revive the affected economy of Malaysia. Under the Short-Term Economic Recovery Plan, Tengku Zafrul has launched the ePenjana credit program worth RM750 million to aimed at boosting consumer spending in Malaysia.Previous positions
- AmInvestment Bank
- Credit Agricole &
- Tenaga Nasional Bhd
- CIMB Investment Bank Berhad
- Avenue Capital Resources Bhd/Avenue Securities
- Citigroup Malaysia
- Tune Money
- Kenanga Holdings Berhad and Investment
- Maybank Investment Bank Berhad and Maybank Kim Eng Holdings
- CIMB Investment Bank Berhad
- CIMB Bank Berhad
- CIMB Group Holdings Berhad
- Ministry of Finance
Recognition and Awards
Other media
Television
Tengku Zafrul was one of the judges of the corporate reality television series The Firm. The show premièred prime time nationwide on ntv7 and Astro's Channel 7 in Malaysia in 2007. As one of the three millionaire judges on The Firm, the other two beings Peter Pek and Chan Boon Yong, he is considered one of Malaysia's few corporate celebrities. He has also appeared in advertisements for Tune Money. On July 4, 2020, Tengku Zafrul became a special guest on TV3's Money Matters program.| Year | Title | Role | Note |
| 2007 | The Firm | Himself | As a jury |
| 2020 | Money Matters | Himself | As a special guest |
Honours
- :
- * Knight Companion of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang - Dato'
- * Grand Knight of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang - Dato' Sri
- :
- * Knight Commander of the Order of the Crown of Selangor - Dato'
- :
- * Knight Commander of the Order of Loyalty to Negeri Sembilan - Dato'