ESG Forum
LAUNCH OF:
Centre of Excellence Sustainability Impact (CESI) &
Unveiling of ESG Management and Monitoring using AI (EMMA) Solution Suite
Redefining Sustainability for Emerging Markets
As the ESG landscape rapidly evolves, businesses must embrace sustainability to remain competitive. This sets a timely stage for this groundbreaking event, highlighting the critical role of ESG adoption for SMEs and GLCs. The event introduces CESI (Centre of Excellence for Sustainability Impact) and EMMA, an AI-driven ESG solution designed to simplify compliance and drive strategic decision-making. Together, let us mark this as the beginning of a transformative dialogue on ESG and AI integration.
Event Highlights & Appreciation
RAA Capital Partners Launches ESG & AI Innovations at Landmark Event
On 24 February 2025, RAA Capital Partners hosted a milestone event at Kelab Golf Perkhidmatan Awam (KGPA), bringing together industry leaders, policymakers, and innovators to explore ESG and AI-driven solutions for businesses, including SMEs.
In her opening address, Rita Benoy Bushon, Founder & Managing Director of RAA Capital Partners, emphasised the strategic necessity of sustainability. This was followed by a keynote speech from Vicks Kanagasingam, Chairman of Evlos.AI and Advisor to the Ministry of Digital Malaysia, who highlighted the role of digital transformation in strengthening SMEs.
The ESG Forum, moderated by Monica Tiara Mittra, featured insights from Fui K. Soong, Adj. Prof. Murugason R. Thangaratnam, Allan Lau, Rina Neoh, and Prof. M. Nazri Muhd, focusing on ESG compliance, AI, and investor perspectives.
The event also marked the launch of EMMA, an AI-driven ESG management tool, and the Centre of Excellence for Sustainability Impact (CESI) to advance ESG and AI best practices.
Stay tuned for event highlights, photos, and videos as we continue this journey together!

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to all speakers, panellists, and attendees for making this event a success.
Video Highlights






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Speaker Profiles
“ESG Forum: Redefining Sustainability for Emerging Markets – Bridging the ESG Gap for SMEs & GLCs”
The forum’s panelists include esteemed luminaries and professionals from industry.
Vicks Kanagasingam

Now as a Business Transformation Coach, to empower enterprises to achieve scalable growth by strategically implementing emerging technologies like AI and Big Data, integrated with Sustainable Practices (ESG & SDG), fostering relevance and predictable profitability through people-centric and data-driven strategies. Recently, appointed as Advisor & Head of Protem Data Governance Committee to the Ministry of Digital Malaysia.
Career journey since 1993 – MOTOROLA (MY), MAXIS (MY), LOGICA (UK), TELEMEDIA (AUSTRALIA & NZ), BUSINESS LOGIC SYSTEMS Ltd (UK & ROMANIA), INTERSEC (FRANCE) and NETCRACKER (US). In 2017, founded IoT INTEGRATOR in Malaysia an ecosystem for IoT Practitioners, was acquired in 2018 by Xperanti and appointed CEO of XPERANTI IoT. In January 2022, joined Censof Digital (a subsidiary of Censof Holdings) as CEO.
Qualified as a professional engineer from University of Leicester in UK, with a BEng (Hons) in Electrical & Electronics in 1993. Certified Trainer by MOTOROLA University, U.S in 1995
Certified Professional Coach by International Coach Federation US in 2013.
Fui K. Soong


Fui K. Soong
Centre for Strategic Engagement Sdn Bhd
Fui K. Soong is an experienced researcher, strategist, and public policy expert with over two decades of experience in research, policy advisory, and media engagement. She is the Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for Strategic Engagement Sdn Bhd (CENSE), a boutique public policy research and advisory firm specializing in political and economic intelligence, market insights, and strategic engagement. In this role, she leads efforts to bridge data-driven research with policy recommendations, catering to decision-makers in government, corporate sectors, and civil society.
Fui is also a Director at CENSE Media, the media arm of CENSE, where she plays a key role in identifying market gaps in media consumption and launching content-driven platforms. Under her leadership, CENSE Media has pioneered initiatives such as CityPlus FM, Malaysia’s first Chinese-language business radio station, and Kupi-Kupi FM, a station serving Sabah’s Kadazandusun Murut-speaking audience.
Before founding CENSE, Fui was the Head of the Institute of Strategic Analysis and Policy Research (INSAP), the think tank affiliated with the Malaysian Chinese Association (MCA). In this capacity, she provided critical insights into economic and policy trends affecting Malaysia’s political and business landscape. She later served as the Executive Director of the American Malaysian Chamber of Commerce (AMCHAM), where she facilitated bilateral business engagement between Malaysia and the United States.
Fui holds a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Western Australia and a Master of Economics from the University of Malaya. Her expertise lies in market research, political risk analysis, strategic communications, and policy advocacy, making her a key thought leader in Malaysia’s socio-economic and media landscape.
Adj Prof Murugason R. Thangaratnam


Adj Prof Murugason R. Thangaratnam
CEO, Novem CS
Adjunct Professor Murugason R. Thangaratnam is an energetic and visionary force in the world of cyber and digital security, currently serving as the CEO and Co-Founder of bespoke award-winning cyber security company, Novem CS. With a career spanning over 25 years in the corporate sector, he has gone on to establish himself as a recognised thought leader and sought-after speaker, being regularly featured as a panellist and keynote speaker at major industry conferences, and a columnist in both digital and traditional print media, where his insights into cyber defence, sustainable digital transformation, and strategic security practices are highly valued.
He holds a law degree from the renowned Bond University in Australia, which has provided him with
a unique perspective on the legal aspects of digital security. This legal acumen, combined with
technical certifications in cyber security, digital transformation, and corporate security management
studies, positions him as a holistic leader who understands the multifaceted nature of modern cyber
threats.
On the international stage, he is the Cyber Defence and Intelligence Lead for the New York based
Equanimity Group, which is a consultancy of 9 Partners with 120+ years of collective expertise,
supported by over 45 associates from leading organisations.
He is a member of MDEC’s Digital Expert Panel, Member of the Pro Tem Committee on Data
Governance under the Ministry of Digital, and an Adjunct Professor at University Malaysia of
Computer Science & Engineering (UNIMY). His dynamic leadership and innovative approach earned
him the prestigious Internet 2.0 Conference Dubai, ‘Outstanding Leadership Award’, in 2023.
In addition to offering bespoke consulting and solutions via their partnerships with best of breed global
cyber security players, his company, Novem CS, also offers an AI driven Environmental, Social and
Governance (ESG) reporting platform.
Allan Lau


Adj Prof Murugason R. Thangaratnam
CEO, Novem CS
Adjunct Professor Murugason R. Thangaratnam is an energetic and visionary force in the world of cyber and digital security, currently serving as the CEO and Co-Founder of bespoke award-winning cyber security company, Novem CS. With a career spanning over 25 years in the corporate sector, he has gone on to establish himself as a recognised thought leader and sought-after speaker, being regularly featured as a panellist and keynote speaker at major industry conferences, and a columnist in both digital and traditional print media, where his insights into cyber defence, sustainable digital transformation, and strategic security practices are highly valued.
Certified as a COSIRI Sustainability Assessor and Industry 4.0 Architect, Allan has conducted over 20 ESG training sessions, empowering businesses with the knowledge to integrate responsible practices into their operations. His extensive background in consulting, combined with his leadership role as the National Webmaster for BNI Malaysia, showcases his ability to bridge technical expertise and practical application.
Allan is passionate about guiding SMEs through the complexities of ESG compliance with practical and strategic insights. Guided by the motto “Inspiring progress through technology and ESG to build a sustainable tomorrow,” Allan is committed to helping businesses adopt sustainable and future-ready practices.
Prof. Rina Neoh


Prof Rina Neoh
Ficus Capital
Rina Neoh is a seasoned entrepreneur, with more than 25 years of entrepreneurial experience and has been an angel investor since 2006. Rina co – founded Mercatus Capital, a boutique VC fund in Singapore and is currently managing her second fund, Ficus Capital, the world’s first ESG-Islamic fund. Rina Neoh has more than 25 years of experience in both the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds. With a solid foundation in Bachelor of Science (Honors) in Computer Science and a keen business sense acquired through a post-graduate MBA in International Business, Rina has delivered multi-million dollar returns from more than 80 startup companies which she has either ideated, incubated, accelerated, mentored or scaled up in various industries.
Rina is a seasoned executive with expertise in board leadership, impact investing, and promoting women’s empowerment. She is recognized for driving innovation in education and advocating for social enterprises, sustainability, and fair-trade policies. Rina is known as a thought leader in entrepreneurial leadership and governance, with extensive experiences as the CEO and board director in Asia Pacific’s private and public sectors. Other than that, she has active involvement in philanthropic initiatives for children’s education, women’s empowerment, digital literacy, and entrepreneurship education in East Timor, Peru, and the Philippines. A strong advocate for ESG principles and promoting board excellence, Rina is the elected Secretary General of ESG Association of Malaysia (ESGAM).
Ficus: Ficus Capital (previously known as Ficus Venture Capital) was founded after years of working in the business and investment industry. Our goal is to help entrepreneurs turn their own ideas and visions into successful companies with fundraising and networking guidance. As a results-driven organization, we are constantly looking for ambitious and visionary partners with the drive and flexibility to take their company to the next level.
Prof M Nazri


Prof M Nazri
Ficus AFounder, Centre of AI Innovation
Nazri specialises in AI and cognitive analytics, having spent more than two decades as a practitioner in these fields. Regarded as one of the early pioneers to deploy AI-based analytics in Asia-Pacific since early 2000, Nazri leads the digital transformation strategies for public, private and non-profit organisations globally where he serves as the AI advisor to public and private institutions (enterprises and public listed companies) via the Group’s Digital AI Labs (DIAL) Programmes. Nazri is the Chairman of the AI World Summit (AIWS) Steering Committee and has successfully built a strong global community of AI adopters and practitioners in more than 30 countries.
As at 11 July 2021, Nazri is ranked #1 globally in three categories: AI, Digital Transformation and Predictive Analytics by Thinkers360, a US-based independent body and marketplace for thought leaders based. He was also recently awarded the Global Chamber 2020 Excellence Award for Global Partnerships and Innovation. In 2018 Nazri was named as one of the World’s Top 500 Influential Personalities in the Islamic world and economy (AI). Nazri was also awarded the Asia Pacific’s Top Young Business Leader Award in 2010 by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry.
Nazri was previously part of the investment and research team of international asset management groups where he managed a portfolio of more than USD5 billion in Asia-Pacific (ex-Japan) – before joining an international ratings agency (Fitch Ratings) where he covered regional financial institutions in Asia.
He is presently the Honorary Consul for The Republic of Cabo Verde; Member, Board of Governors for Republic Polytechnic (Singapore) and Advisor to its School of Infocomm. Nazri was previously appointed as the Chairman of the Investment Committee of the Malay Heritage Foundation (a statutory body of the Singapore government) where he was also its board member.