We refer to the Gateway Development Alliance (GDA) plan to privatise Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB).
BDS Malaysia notes that as of January 7, GDA—comprising the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), and Blackrock Inc.-Backed Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP)—effectively held about 82.9% of MAHB’s stake, which is still short of the 90% threshold to seal the deal.
BDS Malaysia’s stance is that not only is the deal unjustified from the perspective of national interest, it is also bad from ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) perspective, since if it goes through, it will result in BlackRock (through its wholly-owned subsidiary GIP) holding a 25% stake in the country’s strategic asset. BlackRock is among the companies identified by UN experts on human rights as being complicit in human rights violations in Gaza because of its substantial ownership of shares in companies that supply weapons to Israel. Moreover, its CEO, Larry Fink, is a vocal supporter of Israel despite Israeli crimes of genocide in Gaza.
BDS Malaysia, therefore, hopes the remaining shareholders will reject the offer by GDA to give a strong message to companies that are complicit with the genocide in Gaza that Malaysia does not welcome them.
January 8, 2025.