KUALA LUMPUR, July 13 — Deputy Finance Minister Liew Chin Tong has proposed that Malaysia establish a one-stop centre for semiconductor and deep-tech financing, offering integrated financing solutions in the heart of Malaysia’s technology cluster.
He said this will turn the technology cluster into Malaysia’s true Silicon Valley, by design bridging the gap between deep tech and capital.
“Our ambition is for Penang and its neighbouring Kulim to take their place alongside Silicon Valley, Taiwan’s Hsinchu, and the Netherlands’ Brainport Eindhoven as a premier global tech cluster,” he said.
Liew said the one-stop centre could support themes, not just single names, inviting investors to back a well-governed national story resting on trust in Malaysia’s rules, which is how confidence is patiently built.
“Therefore, I would like to invite industry and capital market players and regulators to share your thoughts on this,” he said in his opening address at “The Edge-HSBC E&E Symposium 2026: The Value Chain Shift”, here today.
Liew also called on the capital market to view Malaysia as a tech nation rather than just a trading nation and look at the country’s tech stocks more seriously.
“A warm invitation to the venture and private capital community to come upstream and onwards with us, into design and intellectual property, where the greatest value is created.
“To our market institutions, help (us) deepen liquidity, extend ratings coverage, and fuel the growth of this (semiconductor) sector,” he added.
According to Liew, electrical and electronics (E&E) products account for 40 per cent of Malaysia’s national exports, the largest of any category.
He said apart from China and Taiwan, around 13 per cent of global semiconductor assembly and testing is carried out in Malaysia.
