Taib Mahmud-linked stocks unmoved by his death

 

The Taib family is embroiled in a legal tussle over the ownership of a stake in conglomerate Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd.

PETALING JAYA: Investors appear to be shrugging off the demise of Abdul Taib Mahmud as listed companies linked to the former Sarawak chief minister and governor, his family and close associates hardly moved on the news.

At the mid-day break, conglomerate Cahya Mata Sarawak Bhd (CMS), the family’s flagship Bursa Malaysia-listed entity, was down 1 sen or 0.97% at RM1.02 while plantation companies Sarawak Plantation Bhd and Ta Ann Holdings Bhd were down 1 sen or 0.44% at RM2.25, and 2 sen or 0.52% at RM3.83, respectively.

Oil and gas services provider Dayang Enterprise Holdings Bhd fell 5 sen or 2.17% to RM2.25 while steel fabrication company KKB Engineering Bhd was flat at RM1.77.

However, property developer Naim Holdings Bhd nudged up 2.5 sen or 2.89% to 89 sen while Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd was 1 sen or 0.86% higher at RM1.17.

The 87-year-old Taib, who passed away this morning, was Malaysia’s longest-serving head of a state government, holding the post of chief minister for 33 years from 1981 to 2014. He then served as Sarawak governor from 2014 until late last month.

Over the years, the Taib family had built up a business empire of sorts, with interest in industries ranging from construction, cement and building materials, oil and gas, plantations, timber, property development, road maintenance, financial services, and information technology.

Brewing family feud

Admittedly, Taib’s death hardly moved the needle with regards to the share prices of the companies in which his family had substantial stakes in.

However, the real fireworks will come when the details of a brewing feud within the family over CMS comes to light in a court case in the coming months.

The Taib family has found itself embroiled in a legal tussle over the ownership of a stake in CMS, in which it has a 23% stake. The court battle started last September when Taib’s son and CMS group managing director Sulaiman Abdul Rahman Taib challenged the alleged transfer of shares made by Taib to his stepmother, Raghad Kurdi Taib.

The CMS shares in question constitute a 10.33% stake which originally belonged to Sulaiman’s late mother Laila Taib. He had filed an injunction with the Kuching High Court to stop the share transfer, naming Raghad and RHB Bank as defendants.

Taib had married Raghad in 2010 following Laila’s death in 2009.

Sulaiman had questioned the authenticity of his father’s signature on transfer-related documents and sought to submit fresh affidavits to challenge these.

In a surprising twist, Sulaiman along with his brother Mahmud Abu Bekir Taib, who is CMS deputy chairman, named their father as the third defendant in the suit last November.

How Taib’s passing will impact this high-profile case remains to be seen. Things will likely get more complicated and murkier if the feud spills over to the other companies under the family’s business empire. - FMT