PETALING JAYA: Swiss multinational healthcare company, Roche Holdings AG, is expected to invest RM110mil over the next two years to expand its global shared service centre in Malaysia to serve the Asia-Pacific region.
Group chief financial and information officer, Dr Alan Hippe, said the centre, which will be operated by Roche Services (Asia Pacific) Sdn Bhd, was an expansion of its current business portfolio in the sales and distribution of pharmaceutical and diagnostic products and services in Malaysia.
The centre, one of the group’s six centres worldwide, was already in operation since July this year and was established to provide finance, procurement and information and technology services to 15 Roche affiliates across the region, he said.
Roche’s other large shared service centres are located in Budapest (Hungary), Warsaw (Poland), Sao Paolo (Brazil), and one each in Indianapolis and San Francisco in the US.
“Malaysia is chosen after a diligent analysis because Roche wants to tap into the country’s talented workforce which is highly educated and capable of speaking good English to help us in the global market.
“It is also due to the country’s stable business environment. We could hardly see any country which could attain sustainable growth for a very long period,” he said.
The centre is expected to create 260 job opportunities for local professionals and recruitment is ongoing now, he told reporters at the launch of the Shared Service Asia Pacific Centre by Second Minister of International Trade and Industry Datuk Seri Ong Ka Chuan in Petaling Jaya on Wednesday.
Also present were Swiss Ambassador to Malaysia Michael Winzap, Malaysian Investment Development Authority chief executive officer Datuk Azman Mahmud and Sunway Group chairman Tan Sri Jeffrey Cheah.
Ong said shared services and outsourcing centres were growing in Malaysia and to-date, more than 350 foreign and multinational companies had set up their centres here.
“Roche’s investment is a testament to Malaysia’s continued attraction as a preferred investment destination.
“For the first half of this year, our approved foreign investment have already reached 78.2% of the total foreign investment of RM36.1bil achieved in 2015,” he said.
Some RM27bil more investment were still in the pipeline, out of which 66 proposed projects amounting to RM2.22bil comprised regional establishments in the service sector, Ong added. - Bernama
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