Investing in talent: (From second left) Ahmad Shahriman, CIMB Group group chief executive officer Novan Amirudin, CIMB Group chairman Datuk Syed Zaid Albar, and the bank’s senior leaders with the scholarship recipients.
ADVANCING society takes commitment and investment.
In its bid to enable progress, CIMB Foundation has pledged RM50mil towards implementing education initiatives across the Asean region over the next five years (2026- 2030).
These initiatives include supporting youths with scholarships and capacity-building programmes, enabling underprivileged students to access quality education, and driving financial literacy, especially among low-income communities.
CIMB Foundation chief executive officer Ahmad Shahriman Mohd Shariff noted that this is thus far the foundation’s largest commitment to education.
“We will continue to implement education-based programmes that equip individuals and communities with essential skills to make informed decisions, strengthen financial well-being, reduce educational disparities, and foster sustainable community growth,” he said in a Sept 8 press release.
As part of its broader commitment to creating lasting positive impact through education, the foundation recently awarded scholarships to 11 students under the CIMB Asean Scholarship Programme.
These scholars – selected from a pool of over 6,000 applicants and representing B40 and underserved communities – were recognised for their outstanding academic achievements, leadership qualities, resilience and grit.
With the scholarship, these Asean youths will pursue tertiary education at top-tier institutions of their choice, including University of Sydney, King’s College London, University of Leeds, University of Southampton, London School of Economics, Universiti Malaya, Universiti Teknologi Mara and Singapore Management University.
The scholars’ fields of study span disciplines such as politics, philosophy and economics, actuarial mathematics, law, environment and sustainable development with economics, psychology, business administration, information technology, and computer science.
In addition to financial support, each scholar will be paired with a career mentor throughout their academic journey, and will be offered internship opportunities during study breaks to gain first-hand experience working at the bank.
Upon graduation, scholars will have the opportunity to enter the bank’s The Complete Banker structured management trainee programme.
Ahmad Shahriman said that beyond financial support, the scholarship programme nurtures a future-ready, purpose-driven generation equipped to adapt to Asean’s evolving landscape.
“We take pride in witnessing bright young talents thrive in their academic journeys, uplift their families and contribute to their communities,” he added.
To date, the scholarship programme has benefited 144 scholars with an investment of RM82.4mil.
