Corporate Secretarial

Malaysia Limited Liability Company (be it Sendirian Berhad, or Berhad) is detached from another individuals or businesses with respect to accountability, these are also separate legal existence to two:

• Shareholders – those who own the company
• Directors – those who operate the company

The company will continue in existence until it is removed from the Registrar. This would mean that another person can legally enter into contract, acquire, and own property in the name of the company. The property owned by a company can be motor vehicles, machineries, intangible assets, lands, both residential and commercial properties, and many more.

Private company can be incorporated and operated by a single resident director (public company with minimum of 2 resident directors). Private company can have a minimum of 1 shareholder and a maximum of 50 shareholders. Public company allows more than 50 shareholders. Shareholder can be a natural person or corporate.

The biggest benefit of forming your own company is limited liability protection. Simply put, your personal assets are secured against your company’s liabilities.

To start a Malaysian company, you only need a minimum of RM1 paid up capital. The company must have at least one shareholder subscribed to the shares of the company. The shareholder applies even to non-Malaysians. However, there are certain industries requiring partial local shareholding. In the case of such, an additional local shareholder will be needed.

You would need at least one director who is of legal age and is a currently residing in Malaysia. The director must not be a bankrupt, or a convict who has been imprisoned more than 5 years.

On top of a shareholder and a director, you would also need at least one company secretary. The company secretary must be a member of Malaysian recognised professional bodies, or licensed by the Companies Commission of Malaysia.

Last but not least, the company must have a registered address in Malaysia. It is of normal practice to have the secretarial office as the registered office.