Malaysia: myNEF’s Ashran Ghazi to head MaGIC

Ashran Ghazi, CEO of MaGIC

By Liz Lee

April 26, 2016

Ashran Ghazi has officially been announced the newly appointed head of government agency championing entrepreneurship, Malaysian Global Innovation & Creativity Centre (MaGIC).

MaGIC said in a statement on Tuesday that Ghazi will assumed the role of chief executive officer, taking up the vacant position founding chief executive officer Cheryl Yeoh left since January.

Ghazi will take office May 1, 2016, the statement read.

The familiar face among entrepreneurship events and endeavours in Malaysia is a graduate of University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, USA in Bachelor of Business Administration (Finance & CIS).

Ghazi started his career in the oil & gas sector with Petronas MITCO, and is well-versed with the entrepreneurship. Through his efforts, he has also played a role in building the local and regional entrepreneurship ecosystem.

“I’m truly excited to be given the opportunity to lead the team at MaGIC and continue the great work that has been done to grow the entrepreneurship ecosystem. Being an entrepreneur myself, I understand the key areas that we will need to focus on to ensure that Malaysian entrepreneurs have the right opportunities and support to grow and succeed. I will be working with the team at MaGIC to chart the strategic direction for the next 6 to 12 months and will speak more about this in the coming months,” he told DEALSTREETASIA.

He leads many organizations – as chairman of the New Entrepreneurs Foundation (myNEF); chairman at myHarapan; president of Malaysian Association of Bumiputera ICT Industry & Entrepreneurs (NEF); and deputy chairman of the Global Innovation & Entrepreneurship Foundation.

In addition, he also served as an Advisory Board Member to Malaysian SME Development Academy (MASMED) as well as a Board Member for SME Corp.

In 2011, Ashran co-founded Joota, a social content networking site. Joota managed to garner private investments of $2.1 million, with patent and distribution partners in the US.

His recent initiatives include creating an accelerator for the creative sector via comics – ComicXcel and a new ASEAN regional award for start-ups, Rice Bowl Startup Awards.

Secretary General of Treasury and chairman of MaGIC, Mohd Irwan Serigar Abdullah said he believes that Ashran will lead MaGIC to greater heights and fulfil the mandate given to MaGIC to further enhance the entrepreneurship ecosystem and create visibility as well as opportunities for local entrepreneurs within the region and globally.

Also read:

Serial entrepreneur Ashran Ghazi tipped to be next CEO of Malaysia’s MaGIC: Report

Malaysia: MaGIC’s Cheryl Yeoh to leave in Jan 2016, hunt for new CEO underway

Startup Malaysia: Yeoh’s legacy in MaGIC to continue in 2016

Singapore Reporter/s

In Singapore, we are looking to double our reporting team by this year-end to comprehensively cover the fast-moving world of funded startups and VC, PE & M&A deals. We want reporters who can tell our readers what is really happening in these sectors and why it matters to markets, companies and consumers. The ability to write precisely and urgently is crucial for these roles. Ideal candidates must have to ability to work in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-changing environment. We want our new hires to be digitally savvy and ready to experiment with new forms of storytelling. Most importantly, we are looking for hard-hitting reporters who work well in a team. Collaboration and collegiality are a must.

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).   

  • A reporter to track companies/startups that have raised private capital, and have the potential to become unicorns. SEA currently has over 40 companies with a valuation of over $100 million and under $1 billion.
  • A reporter who can get behind the scenes and reveal how funding rounds are put together, or why they’ve failed to materialise. She/he in this role will largely focus on long-format stories. 
  • A journalist to track special situations funds, distressed debt and private credit (from the PE angle) across Asia.
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Singapore Reporter/s

In Singapore, we are looking to double our reporting team by this year-end to comprehensively cover the fast-moving world of funded startups and VC, PE & M&A deals. We want reporters who can tell our readers what is really happening in these sectors and why it matters to markets, companies and consumers. The ability to write precisely and urgently is crucial for these roles. Ideal candidates must have to ability to work in a collaborative, dynamic, and fast-changing environment. We want our new hires to be digitally savvy and ready to experiment with new forms of storytelling. Most importantly, we are looking for hard-hitting reporters who work well in a team. Collaboration and collegiality are a must.

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).

Following vacancies can be applied for (only in Singapore).   

  • A reporter to track companies/startups that have raised private capital, and have the potential to become unicorns. SEA currently has over 40 companies with a valuation of over $100 million and under $1 billion.
  • A reporter who can get behind the scenes and reveal how funding rounds are put together, or why they’ve failed to materialise. She/he in this role will largely focus on long-format stories. 
  • A journalist to track special situations funds, distressed debt and private credit (from the PE angle) across Asia.
APPLY NOW