Lim Tze Seong joined the Employees Provident Fund (EPF) Malaysia in 2006 and is currently the Deputy Chief Investment Officer. Previously, he served as the Head of Equity Department, where he oversees both Global and Domestic Equities. Prior to joining EPF, Tze Seong held senior roles in some of Malaysia’s leading fund management companies from 1997 to 2006, managing diverse investment mandates.
Earlier in his career, he served as an investment analyst at a major investment bank from 1991 to 1997. He holds a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Wales, United Kingdom, and is a qualified member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.
Samuel Rhee is Co-founder and Chairman at Endowus, the largest independent digital wealth platform in Asia, which pioneered digital wealth across personal savings, private wealth and public pension as the first digital advisor for Singapore’s Central Provident Fund. Endowus is backed by UBS, Prosus, Citi, MUFG, Lightspeed, Samsung, Singtel, and EDBI.
As a FinTech investor and expert, Sam is passionate about leveraging technology to solve the biggest financial problems, such as retirement adequacy and the global pension crisis. He serves as a Steering Committee Member for Longevity Economics at the World Economic Forum.
Sam has over three decades of institutional experience in the finance industry across London, Hong Kong and Singapore, and was formerly the CEO and Chief Investment Officer (CIO) at Morgan Stanley Investment Management in Asia. Sam also serves as an Independent Director on the Board of Naver, the largest tech company in Korea.
Rejina started off her career in stock broking before joining the fund management industry in 1998.
She has under her belt over 25 years in the Malaysian capital markets, spent mostly in the investment management industry. Up till the end of 2021, Rejina was the Founding MD for the Malaysian office of Nomura Asset Management which she grew from scratch to an award winning firm with over MYR30 billion in assets under management.
She remains actively involved with the industry through her role as Advisor to the Institutional Investors Council Malaysia as well as her involvement in various industry committees including climate change taxonomy, Islamic finance and women leadership. She also serves as a Board member of various public listed and private companies.
Rejina was one of the inaugural 2021 Listee of the Kindness & Leadership 50 Leading Lights Asia Pacific and was also named by Asia Asset Management magazine as 25 industry leaders of the Asian asset management industry in 2021.
She started Wahine (pronounced Wa-hee-nay) Capital as a means of securing the financial future of women and they released their first product, W Vault on 28th May 2023.
Alina Amir is the director of ArusAcademy, an education social enterprise driven by a decade of experience in empowering marginalized communities through equitable learning solutions. With a degree in Actuarial Science and a post-graduate diploma in Education, her work bridges the gap between systemic challenges and grassroots impact.
She leads Fun(d) for Life, a financial literacy initiative that has engaged over 40,000 primary and secondary students and 5,000 teachers nationwide, equipping youth with practical skills like budgeting, savings, and debt management. This year, she expanded the program to launch Fun(d) for Life Edisi Uni, supporting B40 university students through tailored workshops, monthly coaching, and guidance on managing cash transfers effectively, ensuring they navigate financial pressures while pursuing higher education. In collaboration with the Ministry of Education, her team runs nationwide programs in public schools, prioritizing marginalized communities where access to resources is limited. Beyond classrooms, Arus Academy runs a community school in Chow Kit offering education to children excluded from formal systems, reflecting Alina’s unwavering belief that opportunity should transcend circumstance. Arus’ initiatives are rooted in teacher partnerships, inclusive curriculum design, and direct community engagement which aims to dismantle barriers by nurturing agency in young people. Whether through financial literacy, adaptive learning strategies, or safe spaces for underserved youth, Alina’s work underscores a vision of generational resilience, empowering individuals to adapt to and actively shape a rapidly changing world.
Dr. Amjad Rabi is a social security expert with extensive experience advising national governments on reforming social security systems. He currently serves as a visiting expert at Universiti Malaya’s Social Wellbeing Research Centre (SWRC), a technical advisor to Malaysia’s Employees Provident Fund (EPF), and a lecturer on human security at the University of Nottingham (Malaysia campus) and the Balsillie School of International Affairs (Canada).
Dr. Rabi has held senior positions within the United Nations, working in country offices across Iraq, Malaysia, Nepal, Zimbabwe, Egypt, and Argentina, as well as at UN headquarters in New York and Geneva. His influential work in policy reform is supported by numerous publications on the subject, and he has provided specialized training and coaching to social security professionals in over 30 countries.
Additionally, he has taught at leading universities in Canada, the USA, Malaysia, and Palestine. An accomplished public speaker, Dr. Rabi is frequently invited to share his insights on social security reform, human security, and global policy at major international forums and high-level gatherings.
Dr. William Tan embodies passion and resilience. Paralyzed from the waist down due to polio at age two, he overcame immense challenges to excel academically and professionally. From a kindergarten dropout, he earned scholarships to Singapore’s Raffles Institution and later graduated with First Class Honours in Physiology from the National University of Singapore. A Fulbright Scholar at Harvard and Chevening Scholar at Oxford, he also trained at the Mayo Clinic, pursuing his dream of becoming a scientist and physician.
In 1987, Dr. Tan realized his achievements should serve greater causes. Since then, he has championed and fundraised for charities worldwide, raising over $18 million for causes like polio eradication and cancer treatment. His endeavors include wheelchair marathons across continents, skydiving, and scaling buildings to support underprivileged communities.
In 2007, he became the first person to complete a wheelchair marathon at the North Pole in –25°C temperatures and later set a world record by finishing seven marathons across seven continents in 26 days. Diagnosed with Stage 4 leukemia in 2009, he turned adversity into advocacy, raising funds for needy cancer patients even during chemotherapy. His inspiring journey continued with handcycling challenges, including a 500km ride from London to Paris, to support leukemia research.
Dr. Tan’s contributions have earned him numerous accolades, including the Singapore Youth Award, the Commonwealth Youth Award, and the Reader’s Digest Inspiring Asian Award. He was also honored with the Public Service Star Award and the Commonwealth Points of Light Award from Queen Elizabeth II.
Despite his battles, Dr. Tan remains unstoppable. From competing in the Pyongyang Marathon to ferrying children in a 50-hour SG50 charity ride, his relentless dedication inspires countless individuals and organizations worldwide. His story is a testament to the power of perseverance and using one’s life to uplift others.
Lily Fu, 77, is the founder of SeniorsAloud, Malaysia’s largest and most active online grassroot community of seniors set up in 2008 to promote ageing well. She holds an MSc in Applied Gerontology from Nanyang Technological University (2018), Singapore. At 70 she was the oldest in the pioneer batch of students. Lily also has a Master in Teaching English from Universiti Malaya (2000). She is currently Vice-President of University of the Third Age (U3A), Malaysia, based at the National Research Centre on Ageing (MyAgeing), Universiti Putra Malaysia.
A popular speaker at conferences and seminars on ageing, Lily has been interviewed on Astro Awani, BFM, The Edge, The Star, and other publications and media platforms. She is a staunch advocate for the rights and needs of the older generation.
Her many accolades include being chosen an Icon of Ageing by Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (UMMC) in conjunction with International Day of Older Persons 2022. In 2023, she received an award for Senior Community Leadership from Amazing Seniors, a well-known platform for seniors aged 50 and above.
A columnist with the Star, Lily writes about the challenges faced by our ageing population while at the same time shares the opportunities for senior citizens to age independently and contribute economically to the country. Her SeniorsAloud blog was recently listed #16 among top blogs on ageing matters worldwide.
Lily turned film-maker in 2020 at age 72 with a documentary ‘Meniti Senja’ (The Twilight Years). The film centres on an aged care home and its elderly residents. It won awards at Senior Film Festivals in Kyoto, Japan and in Szczecin, Poland. The documentary has also been shown at universities. The aim was to generate intergenerational discussion on ageing issues with the students to promote empathy for older people in general, and for their own grandparents in particular.
Lily has distinguished herself as a senior citizen who deeply understands and experiences the daily challenges of ageing. She has been depending on public transport for almost 30 years, and lives in a walk-up apartment. Her daily walks in the city have given her an insight into what the government can and should do to make life easier for the elderly. This is further reinforced by her extensive involvement in the senior community and aged care homes.
Aside from her advocacy work especially on raising awareness of elder abuse, neglect and abandonment, Lily is actively involved in spearheading projects that help at-risk seniors living alone and going through loneliness and depression.
Having spent 11 years as a caregiver for her mother, Lily knows what Alzheimer’s Disease does to a person. It was this and her interest in ageing issues that prompted her to study for an MSc in Applied Gerontology. She certainly walks the talk and lives by example that ‘Age is just a number’.
With more than 30 years of experience in the subject of digital transformation and best practices in technological innovations for public management, Mr. Rodrigo Assumpção was president of Dataprev from 2008 to 2017, where he led a profound transformation in the company, which achieved an increase in profitability and efficiency. He was a consultant specialized in ICT management and digital modernization in international organizations such as the World Bank and the International Social Security Association (AISS).
He served as deputy secretary of Logistics and Information Technology at the Ministry of Planning, Budget and Management and coordinated the Electronic Government area of the City of Santo André (SP). Working as an educator at the Cajamar Institute, he was director of the Florestan Fernandes Institute and the NGO Sampa.Org, where he worked on digital inclusion projects.
With a Bachelor’s degree in History and a Master’s degree in Communication Sciences from the University of São Paulo (USP), Rodrigo Assumpção leaves his role as specialist in Information Systems for Social Protection Management at the International Labor Organization (ILO), a United Nations agency, to assume the presidency of Dataprev, assume the presidency of Dataprev, which is linked to the Ministry of Management and Innovation in Public Services and continues with the mission of providing digital solutions for the exercise of citizenship.
Prof. Jomo KS is Research Adviser at the Khazanah Research Institute. He is also Fellow of the Academy of Science, Malaysia, and Emeritus Professor at the University of Malaya. In 2023, he became Senior Advisor to the Global Programme on Measuring Corruption at the International Anti-Corruption Academy.
He was a member of the Economic Action Council, chaired by the seventh Malaysian Prime Minister (2019-2020), and the 5-member Council of Eminent Persons appointed by him (May-August 2018). He was also Professor at the University of Malaya (1986-2004), independent member of the National Economic Consultative Council (1989-1991), President of the Malaysian Social Science Association, Founding Convener of the International Malaysian Studies Conference, Founder-Chair of International Development Economics Associates (IDEAs), UN Assistant Secretary-General for Economic Development in the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA) from 2005 until 2012 (2005-2012), Research Coordinator for the G24 Intergovernmental Group on International Monetary Affairs and Development (2006-2012), Assistant Director General for Economic and Social Development, Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (2012-2015) and Third Holder of the Tun Hussein Onn Chair in International Studies at the Institute of Strategic and International Studies, Malaysia (2016-2017). He received the 2007 Wassily Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought and several honorary doctorates. The World Academy of Sciences has announced he will share the 2026 TWAS Award in Social Sciences.
During 2008-2009, Prof. Jomo KS served as adviser to the President of the 63rd United Nations General Assembly, and as a member of the [Stiglitz] Commission of Experts on Reforms of the International Monetary and Financial System. During 2010-2012, he was G20 sherpa to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, and also UN G20 Finance Deputy during 2011-2012. He has authored and edited over a hundred books and translated 12 volumes besides writing many academic papers and media articles. Prof. Jomo KS was Professor in the Applied Economics Department, UM until November 2004, Founder Director (1978-2004) of the Institute of Social Analysis (INSAN) and Founder Chair (2001-2004) of IDEAs, International Development Economics Associates (www.ideaswebsite.org); he now serves on its Advisory Panel. He is on the editorial boards of several learned journals.
Born in Penang in 1952, Prof Jomo KS studied at the Penang Free School, Royal Military College, Yale (BA, 1970-1973) and Harvard (MPA, PhD, 1973-1977). He has taught at USM (1974), Harvard (1974-1975), Yale (1977), UKM (1977-1982), UM (1982-2004) and Cornell (1993). He has also been a Visiting Fellow at Cambridge University (1987-1988; 1991-1992) and a Senior Research Fellow at the National University of Singapore (2004).
Dr. Jemilah Mahmood is a medical professional with more than two decades of experience managing crises in health, disasters and conflict settings. She is currently Professor and Executive Director of the Sunway Centre for Planetary Health at Sunway University in Malaysia. She holds advisory council roles in the Government of Malaysia in Climate and Higher Education. She is also an Adjunct Professor at the Universiti of Malaya, the Sustainability Advisor at Air Asia, and the national advisor of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society. Globally, she is a member of the board of Roche in Switzerland and the Norwegian Refugee Council, a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council of Responsible Resource Use and a Global Ambassador for the Humanitarian Grand Bargain. She currently co chairs the World Economic Forum Steering Committee on Climate and Health. She is a strong advocate of planetary health and sustainability and actively advises on Environment, Social and Governance in the advisory and board roles she holds.
Previous appointments include the Under Secretary General for Partnerships at the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), Chief of the World Humanitarian Summit secretariat at the United Nations, and Chief of the Humanitarian Response Branch at UNFPA. She was the Special Advisor to the Prime Minister of Malaysia on Public Health. She was the first Pro Chancellor of Heriot Watt University in Malaysia. She is the founder of MERCY Malaysia, a leading southern-based international humanitarian organisation.
She is the recipient of numerous national and international awards including the most prestigious Malaysian Merdeka Award in 2015 and the ASEAN Prize in 2019, for her contribution to peace, community development and humanitarian work. She also received the inaugural Isa Award for Humanity in 2013 from the Kingdom of Bahrain and the Gandhi-King-Ikeda Award for community development and peace building from Morehouse College, USA. More recently, she was awarded the Wu Lien-Teh Award for Leadership in Public Health 2023.
Dr. Jemilah Mahmood graduated as a Doctor of Medicine (MD) from the National University of Malaysia, has a Masters in Obstetrics and Gynecology from the same university and is a Fellow of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists United Kingdom. She also completed executive education at the International Management and Development Centre, IMD Lausanne and University California Berkeley Law.
Haleh is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Centre for Financial and Monetary Systems. She spearheads the Centre’s work focused on individual financial wellbeing, leading initiatives focused on the longevity economy as well as financial education. Haleh has written and spoken extensively on the need for a multistakeholder solution to address growing demographic changes and its impact on financial resilience.
Haleh has been leading the Forum’s work on the Longevity Economy initiative since its inception. This holistic and wide-ranging initiative seeks to advance new thinking in the retirement ecosystem, while promoting financial innovations for a more resilient, equitable and sustainable longer life. In 2024, in collaboration with over 35 leading organizations across the financial services industry, government, and civil society, the initiative established six Longevity Economy Principles in order to further public-private collaboration for a financially resilient future.
More recently, the Forum has published a new report that explores five key trends shaping the future of aging and highlights innovative solutions to navigate this demographic transformation. Developed in collaboration with 50+ global organizations, Future-Proofing the Longevity Economy: Innovations and Key Trends identifies key trends shaping long-term financial resilience.
In addition, Haleh also leads the Forum’s Women in Finance community which brings together over 75 global executives. This cross-industry group convenes leaders across financial services, investing, real estate and government to explore shifting industry priorities and identify action-oriented solutions that can be amplified by the World Economic Forum.
Prior to joining the World Economic Forum, Haleh worked at AIG in several different roles as well as the Council on Foreign Relations. Haleh received her master’s degree in Middle Eastern Studies from New York University.
Amlan Roy is a Macro-Finance Researcher & Thought Leader specialising in Global Macroeconomics & Demographics. His book “Demographics Unravelled” was mentioned by the FT as one of the best new books in Economics. He is an Investment Advisor and Global keynote speaker who has worked with institutional clients from across 50+ countries. He is a Partner (Investments) at LCP and a Research Associate at LSE’ (Financial Markets Group & Systemic Risk Centre). He is an elected Honorary Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries.
He founded Global Macro Demographics in 2021. Over 2017-2021, he was Senior MD with State Street Global Advisors and Global Head of Macro Research. Prior to that he was MD and Head of Global Demographics & Pensions Research with Credit Suisse Investment Bank over 1998-2016. He developed Global Risk & Asset Allocation models as a Financial System Architecture expert.
Amlan had a distinguished award-winning university teaching career (US & UK) over more than a decade. He was UK ESRC Research Fellow, Ponders Fellow, a Boston University Doctoral Scholar and a Government of India National Scholar. He has a PhD in Financial Economics from the University of Iowa, an MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad and BA (Hons.) Economics degree from St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi.
Fredrik Reinfeldt has been active in Swedish and international politics for over 25 years. As Party leader and Swedish Prime Minister, Mr Reinfeldt reinvented the Moderate Party (centre-right) and formed a four-party alliance that won two successive elections. Today Mr Reinfeldt is active giving lectures on geopolitical situation, leadership, economy and European and Nordic politics.
In March 2023 Mr Reinfeldt was appointed President of the Swedish Football Association. The Swedish FA is the governing and body of football in Sweden. It organises the football leagues – Allsvenskan for men and Damallsvenskan for women – and the men´s and women´s national teams. It is a founding member of both FIFA and UEFA.
In May 2022 Mr Reinfeldt was appointed chair of Visita. Visita represents approximately 8.000 hotels, restaurants and other enterprises in the Swedish hospitality sector. Visita is a part of The Confederation of Swedish Enterprise which is Sweden´s largest business federation representing 60.000 member companies with over 1.6 million employees.
Since August 2019 he is also chair of the newly formed Centrum för AMP. Centrum for AMP is a centre of excellence in the field of activating public spaces. It´s a Swedish model of the BID-concept (Business improvement district) that successfully has been used in for example New York and London.
During the years 2016-2019 Mr Reinfeldt held the post as chair to the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI). The EITI is an international coalition of stakeholders working together to promote open and accountable management of natural resources.
Guy Standing has held professorships at the universities of Bath (UK) and Monash (Australia), as well as SOAS University of London, where he is now a professorial research associate. A labour economist, he was previously Director of the Socio-economic Security Programme at the International Labour Organization. He has advised many international bodies and governments on social and economic policies, and was an economic adviser in the Prime Minister’s Department in Malaysia in the 1980s. In 1986 he co-founded the Basic Income Earth Network (BIEN), an international NGO that campaigns for basic income as an economic right, and is now its co-president.
His books include the best-selling The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class (2011; fourth edition 2021); Basic Income: A Transformative Policy for India (2015); The Corruption of Capitalism: Why Rentiers Thrive and Work Does Not Pay (2016; third edition 2021); Basic Income: And How We Can Make It Happen (2017); Plunder of the Commons: A Manifesto for Sharing Public Wealth (2019); Battling Eight Giants: Basic Income Now (2020); and The Politics of Time: Gaining Control in the Age of Uncertainty (2023).
Nurul Izzah is a social policy activist, former three term legislator and public servant. She co-founded Malaysia’s leading multiethnic party, the People’s Justice Party, (KEADILAN) in 1999 and is Deputy President.
In 2021 she lead a covid adjusted Multidimensional Poverty Index study in her constituency Permatang Pauh. In 2023, she co-chaired the Secretariat of the Special Advisory Body to the Minister of Finance.
She now heads POLITY, a think tank focused on empowering women and youth in communities.
Nurul Izzah holds a degree in Electrical Engineering from UNITEN Malaysia and a Masters in International Relations in Southeast Asia Studies from the School of Advanced International Studies-Johns Hopkins University.
Afhzal Abdul Rahman is the Chief Digital Technology Officer (CDTO) at the Employees Provident Fund (EPF). With over 25 years of experience in managing enterprise IT operations and large-scale IT systems implementation, he currently drives digital and technology strategy and the development of digital capabilities and competencies to achieve strategic business outcomes. Graduating with a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Columbia University (NY), he has worked with MNCs, including Maybank, DHL, Shell, T-Systems, IBM and Esso, in various IT roles.
Afhzal also currently serves as a Board Member at Telekom Malaysia and TM Digital Innovation Sdn Bhd (Credence) and is a Vice-Chair of the Technical Commission on ICT at the International Social Security Association.
Nurhisham currently serves as the Economic Advisor, Prime Minister’s Office in the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO). He plays a key advisory role, supporting the Prime Minister on matters pertaining to the economy, investments and the capital markets, social protection, and other related areas.
He was named Chief Strategy Officer, Employees Provident Fund (EPF) in January 2020 after serving the provident fund for five years in various roles.
Nurhisham joined the EPF in 2014 and previously served as Head of the Economics and Capital Markets Department, overseeing economic surveillance of over 20 economies across the globe, contributing to the investment process at EPF. He served EPF after a stint with Malaysian Rating Corporation Berhad (MARC) and Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB).
He also presently sits on the Board of Directors of ProtectHealth Corporation Sdn. Bhd., an MOH company, and was formerly an EPF nominee to the Boards of Axiata Group Berhad and Astro Malaysia Holdings Berhad.
Nurhisham holds a BSc in Monetary Economics from the University of London School of Economics and Political Science, and a Masters in Economics from Universiti Malaya.
TBC
Ahmad Zulqarnain Onn is the Chief Executive Officer of the Employees Provident Fund (EPF), the largest Malaysian retirement fund. He was previously the Group Chief Executive of Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB), the largest asset management company in Malaysia.
Prior to PNB, he was the Deputy Managing Director of Khazanah Nasional Berhad, Malaysia’s sovereign wealth fund, where he held various positions including Head of Strategy, Head of the Strategic Fund, and Head of the Financial Institutions Group. Zulqarnain was the founding Chief Executive Officer of a financial guarantee insurer which provided credit enhancement and structuring for large infrastructure projects.
He has held various roles in institutions involved in debt restructuring and resolutions efforts following the Asian financial crisis, as well as in investment banks. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Harvard University.
