KUALA LUMPUR, July 6 — The Ministry of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (KUSKOP) has injected a staggering RM25.27 billion in development financing, benefiting 847,653 local businesses and cooperatives nationwide over a 29-month period concluding May 31.

The capital layout was designed to give micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) a competitive edge by reinforcing their working capital reserves, scaling up operational thresholds, and funding physical upgrades for equipment and trade locations, Deputy Minister Datuk Mohamad Alamin told the Dewan Rakyat today.

Addressing the lower house during a question-and-answer session, Mohamad highlighted that the underlying health of these credit disbursements is actively monitored through business recovery and repayment timelines.

“This shows that the financing provided not only helps meet businesses’ capital requirements, but also contributes to the resilience and long-term sustainability of entrepreneurs’ businesses,” Mohamad said, in response to a parliamentary inquiry from Rodiyah Sapiee (GPS-Batang Sadong) regarding agency loan performance.

While the ministry bypasses a generalized non-performing financing (NPF) ceiling across all operational bodies, individual portfolios maintain targeted risk thresholds below 10 percent.

Providing a statistical breakdown as of May, Mohamad stated that the National Entrepreneurial Group Economic Fund (TEKUN Nasional) maintained an NPF of 9.69 percent, while SME Bank and Bank Rakyat hovered at 10.49 percent and 1.93 percent respectively. Remarkably, Amanah Ikhtiar Malaysia (AIM) sustained an elite NPF default rate of just 0.01 percent.

The Deputy Minister also praised the performance of decentralized financial mechanisms, detailing that SME Corp’s peer-to-peer (P2P) digital lending platforms have systematically eliminated traditional collateral barriers for fast-growth startups. Between January and May, the program authorized RM18.5 million in emergency business capital for 39 distinct MSMEs, dropping institutional approval wait times from 21 days down to less than a week.

“Based on SME Corp’s MSME Survey 2025, the primary purpose of this alternative financing was to fund working capital (74.2 per cent), asset purchases (39.1 per cent), and business expansion or the opening of new branches (28.9 per cent),” the Deputy Minister stated.

To shield interior traders in Sabah and Sarawak from economic volatility, Mohamad outlined a holistic support matrix focusing on digital literacy drives, foundational business seminars, expedited halal licensing tracks, and an active retail alliance with TikTok Shop Malaysia.

Furthermore, responding to supplementary queries from Datuk Dr Ahmad Yunus Hairi (PN-Kuala Langat) concerning Orang Asli entrepreneurs—with specific reference to the tourist-centric Mah Meri craft community on Carey Island—the ministry pledged targeted talent programs to help aggressively commercialize native handicraft and heritage products.

-NMT