Datuk Chay Wai Leong
Group managing director, Kenanga Investment Bank
From the Asian financial crisis of 1997 and the subprime crisis of 2008, to the dotcom bubble and the digitisation of the stock market, Datuk Chay Wai Leong has seen it all.
Starting his career in 1987, Chay is now the group managing director of Kenanga Investment Bank, the largest independent investment bank in Malaysia. With Chay at the helm of Kenanga Investment Bank, he has overseen the exponential growth of the business and its numerous achievements on the Malaysian finance and investment banking landscape.
In July 2022, Kenanga Investment Bank was named Best Securities House Malaysia 2022 at the Asiamoney 2022 Best Securities Houses Awards.
Chay is a firm believer of the democratisation of financial services for what he calls "a new generation of traders", not just institutional investors.
“Contrary to popular belief that the stock market is only for institutional investors who have all the investment know-how and should charge a hefty fee to help individuals invest, we believe we should give retail investors the power to choose. In this era of tech and mobile, we have the extraordinary opportunity to deliver just that.”