Carsome’s controversial letter to Malaysian minister unpacked

Photo credit: Carsome

Dan Lain-Lain (Malay for “and others”) is a weekly column by TIA journalist Emmanuel Samarathisa that dissects the goings-on in the Malaysia tech scene but with a heavy mix of current affairs, policy and politics. Click here to read past articles.

Last Friday, we ran a scoop that used-car platform Carsome petitioned Malaysian Deputy Finance Minister Steven Sim to be recommended as an investment for government-linked investment companies (GLICs) and government-linked companies (GLCs).

After hitting publish, it was fire. I received requests for the headline to be changed, among others. After mulling over them, we stuck with the headline because we felt it captured the letter well.

A mini storm also brewed on social media, especially Twitter, where I usually hang out.

So I wagered it’s time for a follow-up to unpack some of the points in the article and to talk about an interesting development that has happened since.

Did Carsome have to write to the minister?

In a response to our story, Carsome denied soliciting or petitioning the Finance Ministry for funding.

It said the March 27 letter was in “response to an engagement session” with the ministry “to encourage and welcome the participation of Malaysian institutional investors in the company’s growth journey.”

But the fact is that Carsome did write a letter to the minister and it did implore him to recommend the company as an investment to the country’s state-owned institutions and firms.

I wanted Minister Sim’s take on this so I reached out to his team for comment. Sim acknowledged receiving the letter, which was sent to his office in April, and said he passed it to the relevant departments within the Finance Ministry for “review and any further action deemed necessary.”

Deputy Finance Minister Steven Sim (white shirt) visiting Carsome’s regional headquarters in Petaling Jaya in February. / Photo credit: Carsome

He added that it’s not within the purview of the deputy minister’s office to recommend or make any decisions on investments by the ministry or its agencies. Sim went on to cite existing structures in place within the ministry and relevant agencies to review proposals “and make decisions based on merits, in a fair and independent manner.”

Here’s another thing: you don’t need to write to the minister to ask GLICs and GLCs to consider your company as an investment. These entities have their respective investment committees and their own frameworks for pouring funds into startups.

Will taxpayer money be used?

‘Coordinated attacks’ by the media?

Institutional FOMO and all that jazz