YTL Power surges ahead on Wessex Water tariff upside, data centre growth

 By Sharen Kaur - August 5, 2025 

YTL Power International Bhd is charging ahead with renewed momentum.

KUALA LUMPUR: YTL Power International Bhd is charging ahead with renewed momentum, powered by robust earnings from its UK-based Wessex Water and rapid expansion in its data centre operations, even as some segments face near-term headwinds, according to CIMB Securities.

Effective April 1, 2025 (FY25), Wessex Water implemented a 21 per cent year-on-year (YoY) hike in metered charges – well above the research firm's earlier assumption of a 13 per cent increase. The steeper tariff has prompted the research house to lift its FY25–FY27 core net profit (CNP) forecasts for Wessex Water by 38 per cent to 52 per cent.

CIMB Securities now expects YTL Power's water and sewerage segment to deliver a strong earnings rebound, with CNP projected at RM242 million in FY25, surging to RM533 million in FY26 (+120 per cent YoY), and RM571 million in FY27 (+7 per cent YoY).

Meanwhile, YTL Power's data centre operations are emerging as a robust growth pillar. Following a reassessment of operating expenditures, CIMB Securities revised its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) margin estimate for the co-location (co-lo) data centre segment from 50 per cent to 70 per cent, citing improved cost visibility and scalability. With an existing capacity of 188 megawatts (MW) fully leased, CIMB Securities expects YTL Power to kick-start new phases of development, incorporating an additional 160 MW to come online progressively in FY27–FY28.

As a result, co-lo data centre CNP is forecast to rise from RM115 million in FY26 to RM431 million by FY29. Excluding this expansion, CIMB Securities's fair value estimate for YTL Power stands at RM4.08.

The research firm had earlier revised its overall FY25–FY27 group-level CNP forecasts lower by 7 per cent to 17 per cent, reflecting a more cautious view on Power Seraya and AI data centre contributions, partially offset by improved earnings from Wessex Water and the co-lo data centre segment.

CIMB Securities expects group CNP to decline 17 per cent YoY in FY25 before rebounding by 9 per cent in FY26 and inching up 1 per cent in FY27.

Despite the downward revisions, CIMB Securities has raised its sum-of-parts-based target price for YTL Power, driven by a 72 sen increase in co-lo data centre fair value, a 12 sen uplift from Wessex Water, and an 11 sen boost from lower risk-free rate assumptions.

However, the outlook for Power Seraya remains subdued. CIMB Securities slashed its FY25–FY27 CNP forecasts for the Singapore-based unit by 16 to 31 per cent, reflecting lower-than-expected pool and retail electricity prices for the first nine months of FY25, as well as the earlier expiry of favourable fuel supply contracts.

Seraya's CNP is now expected to fall by 32 per cent in FY25, 12 per cent in FY26, and 15 per cent in FY27. Although near-term EBITDA/MWh assumptions have been revised down, CIMB maintains a long-term benchmark of S$60/MWh, resulting in a 14 per cent cut to Seraya's fair value, or 28 sen.

Overall, CIMB Securities remains constructive on YTL Power's long-term trajectory, underpinned by Wessex Water's strong regulated earnings and the scaling potential of its data centre ventures.

Source: https://www.nst.com.my/business/corporate/2025/08/1255616/ytl-power-surges-ahead-wessex-water-tariff-upside-data-centre

"Don't get scammed!": Malaysians smart but scammers smarter

By Sharen Kaur - August 5, 2025 

Malaysians are wising up to scams, but the scammers are stepping up their game too.

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians are wising up to scams, but the scammers are stepping up their game too.

Despite rising awareness and tighter security measures, fear and urgency remain potent weapons in the fraudster's arsenal, warns the banking industry.

In its third annual Scam Awareness Survey, the Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM) and the Association of Islamic Banking and Financial Institutions Malaysia (AIBIM) revealed a growing wave of public awareness but also underscored that scammers are evolving just as fast.

Commissioned by the banking sector and conducted by Rakuten Insight between March and April 2025, the survey polled 1,000 Malaysians. The good news: Malaysians are more alert than ever. The bad news: scammers are still exploiting psychological pressure to deceive victims.

Among the key findings, 92 per cent of respondents now recognise the dangers of installing unsolicited APK files – a common malware delivery tactic – and 85 per cent can spot a fake SMS.

Additionally, 79 per cent avoid clicking links in SMS or emails claiming to be from banks, 82 per cent say they would act fast and call their bank's 24/7 hotline, while 77 per cent know how to freeze or disable their card via online/mobile banking.

Much of this progress is credited to the #JanganKenaScam campaign, launched in 2023, and widespread efforts by banks to push scam alerts through apps and push notifications. Over 70 per cent of respondents said they received scam warnings directly via their bank's mobile apps, now seen as one of the most trusted sources for real-time alerts.

But while Malaysians are getting smarter, the survey shows scammers are still getting through by targeting emotions.

Datuk Khairussaleh Ramli, chairman of ABM, said that the #JanganKenaScam campaign has played a key role in improving public awareness and emphasised the need to move beyond education and towards behavioural readiness.

"We are seeing a positive shift in public awareness and trust, but we also recognise that scammers exploit fear and urgency to bypass rational thinking," he said.

"From the survey, we saw that 71 per cent of respondents feared losing money if scammers' instructions were not followed as the primary factor in scam cases."

Banks step up the fight

It's not just awareness campaigns; Malaysia's banks are implementing aggressive anti-scam measures across the board. The five key industry-wide protections include replacing SMS OTPs with more secure authentication for online banking, stricter fraud detection rules to block suspicious transactions in real time, cooling-off periods for new device registrations and online banking enrolments, limiting authentication apps to a single mobile device per account holder, and 24/7 hotlines for immediate scam reporting and response.

These systems are designed to intercept fraud attempts before money is lost, and they're making an impact. Some 76 per cent of Malaysians said they're satisfied with their banks' efforts to protect them from scams – a 13 per cent jump from the previous year's survey – while 3 in 5 found their banks helpful after falling victim to a scam, showing improvement in post-incident support.

In addition, 70 per cent now actively share scam alerts with family and friends, especially via WhatsApp, creating a ripple effect of community protection.

Scammers may be more sophisticated than ever, but so are the countermeasures.

Social media remains the top channel for scam alerts, with 52 per cent discovering fraud awareness content via platforms like Facebook and Instagram. But public education campaigns and traditional media are also playing a vital role, reaching 3 in 5 Malaysians, according to the survey.

The next frontier isn't just information – it's instinct.

It's not just about knowing the signs—it's about having the instincts and tools to respond in the heat of the moment, said Khairussaleh.

Source: https://www.nst.com.my/business/corporate/2025/08/1255673/dont-get-scammed-malaysians-smart-scammers-smarter