Datuk Chay Wai Leong

Group Managing Director, Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad (“Kenanga”)

BBA, Class of 1987

Datuk Chay Wai Leong (“Chay”) is Group Managing Director of Kenanga Investment Bank Berhad (“Kenanga”), a leading independent investment bank in Malaysia. He currently also serves as Chairman of Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd. Since 2021, he has been a member of Bursa Malaysia Berhad’s Sustainability and Development Committee.

With a distinguished career spanning almost 40 years in investment banking and capital markets, Chay has established himself as a prominent leader in the industry. Prior to his appointment in Kenanga, he held various senior positions in some of the most recognised financial institutions such as JPMorgan Chase Bank, Jardine Fleming, Standard Bank Group and RHB Investment Bank.

An advocate for the democratisation of financial services, Chay has been instrumental in transforming wealth management and investing in Malaysia. In 2016, he spearheaded the groundbreaking launch of Rakuten Trade Sdn Bhd, the country’s first fully online trading platform, making investing more accessible to the public. His vision continued with the introduction of Kenanga Digital Investing (“KDI”), an AI-driven robo-advisory service designed to simplify investing for a broader audience. Building on this success, he led the rollout of KDi GO, a SuperApp integrating wealth management, retail payments, and remittance services within a seamless digital ecosystem.

Chay’s leadership has earned prominent recognition. He was named ‘Asia’s Most Influential’ by Tatler Asia in 2022, and ‘Best Investment Banker – Southeast Asia’ by FinanceAsia, and ‘Executive of the Year – Financial Services’ by the Asian Business Review in 2024. Under his stewardship, Kenanga secured multiple accolades over the years, and some of the most notable awards include ‘Malaysia’s Best Securities House’ and ‘Best for ESG in Malaysia’ by Euromoney in 2022 and 2024 respectively, ‘Highest Return to Shareholders Over Three Years’ by The Edge Billion Ringgit Club, ‘Top 20 Overall Excellence’ and ‘Niche Cap Excellence’ by the Minority Shareholders Watch Group, and ‘Best Overall Equities Participating Organisation’, ‘Best Overall Derivatives Trading Participant’, as well as ‘Best Retail Equities Participating Organisation’ by Bursa Malaysia. Kenanga has also been a continuous recipient for Asia Asset Management, Refinitiv Lipper and Edge-Thomson Reuters awards.