PUTRAJAYA: Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that ARM Holdings Plc, a leading semiconductor company from the United Kingdom, is expected to sign an agreement to establish a base in Malaysia next week.
Anwar, who is also the Minister of Finance, said he had an online discussion with ARM's chief executive officer (CEO) this morning.
He said Softbank Group Corp CEO Masayoshi Son also participated in the discussion.
SoftBank is a leading Japanese investment holding company.
"Insya-Allah, we will finalise the agreement next week, and it will be signed," he told the media after launching the Malaysia MADANI Logo Placement Ceremony at the Putrajaya Nasi Kandar Restaurant chain here today.
Earlier, while speaking after Friday prayers at the Sultan Alam Shah School Mosque, Anwar said that ARM is among the best in the world in terms of semiconductor design and manufacturing.
"ARM has chosen to base itself in Malaysia, Alhamdulillah," he said.
Meanwhile, Anwar highlighted that such investments are only possible because Malaysia has political stability and clear policies.
However, he acknowledged that the arrival of such investments also presents challenges for the country in ensuring an adequate supply of young, professional workforce.
"This is a major test - can we provide tens of thousands of young professionals?
"This is a challenge for the youth. A professional workforce is essential when we attract significant investments," he said.
ARM Holdings Plc is a semiconductor and software design company based in Cambridge, England. Its main business is designing central processing unit (CPU) architectures that implement the ARM instruction set.
