SME digital financing platform Funding Societies Malaysia announced that it has appointed Chai Kien Poon as Country Head of Malaysia.

In his new role, he will be responsible for managing day-to-day operations of Funding Societies in Malaysia, as well as driving its strategic business partnerships and initiatives.

Chai has been with Funding Societies for almost four years where he was heading the Strategic Projects and Operations division.

Prior to that, Chai was attached to the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC), where he has experience across multiple capital market segments and led industry wide thematic reviews.

Meanwhile, Wong Kah Meng, Co-founder of Funding Societies Malaysia will now assume a regional role as Group Chief Operating Officer where he will oversee the company’s businesses across Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand.

Under Kah Meng’s leadership, Funding Societies Malaysia had launched in 2017, disbursing over RM1.4 billion spread across more than 17,000 financing deals. The platform maintains a current default rate of 2.3%.

Funding Societies Malaysia is one of the entities under the Funding Societies | Modalku group which also operates in Singapore, Indonesia, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Earlier this year, Funding Societies raised US$294 million (RM1.23 billion) through its Series C+ fundraising.

It also announced a co-investment in Indonesia’s Bank Index as well as the acquisition of regional payments solution CardUp.

Chai said,

“I am honored by the trust and confidence of Kah Meng and the group’s management with this new role, and I look to continue the excellent work we have done so far.

 

We have built ourselves a strong foundation since our inception in Malaysia in 2017, and I am excited to forge the future with the team as we continue to expand our products and services and extend our reach in the SME fintech landscape.”

Wong Kah Meng, Group Chief Operating Officer of Funding Societies | Modalku said,

“It has been a privilege to co-found and lead Funding Societies Malaysia over the last six years. I am humbled by the talent and commitment of our team, and their passion for pioneering digital SME financing in Malaysia.

 

Kien Poon’s broad experience and strong track record complement the amazing team we have in Malaysia and his appointment will no doubt help us to accelerate our mission to further serve the underserved, creditworthy SMEs in the country.”