IP finance in Malaysia takes a major step forward as MIDF becomes the first bank to sign an MOU with WIPO under the ASEAN IP Finance initiative

Malaysian Industrial Development Finance Berhad (MIDF) and the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen efforts in developing intellectual property (IP)-backed financing in Malaysia which will include the launch of an IP-backed finance pilot scheme.

The MoU was signed by Encik Azizi Mustafa, Chief Executive Officer of MIDF, and Daren Tang, Director General of WIPO, and witnessed by Tan Sri Abdul Rahman Mamat, Chairman of MIDF, and Puan Yusnieza Syarmila Yusoff, Director General of MyIPO, the Malaysian Intellectual Property Office.

MIDF Group is a major financial services provider covering investment banking, development finance, and asset management, supporting both entrepreneurs and large corporations and institutions. Founded in 1960, since then it has played a pivotal role in the development and modernisation of Malaysia’s economy and capital markets.

The collaboration forms part of the WIPO ASEAN IP Finance Pilot Project, launched in 2022 under the leadership of Director General Daren Tang, which aims to equip ASEAN financial institutions with the tools and knowledge to recognise IP as an asset class.

Through the MoU, WIPO will work with MIDF to implement a pilot programme on IP-backed lending, with WIPO providing technical assistance and knowledge transfer on framework and best practices.

Also present in the audience at the signing were Datuk Mohan K, Managing Director of Adastra IP, and Christine Ng, IP Valuation Director at Adastra IP.

Adastra IP specialises in intellectual property rights globally, with a particular focus on India, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, The Philippines, Vietnam, and Thailand. Through an exclusive partnership with Inngot, it markets Inngot’s IP profiling, valuation, and management software solutions in Malaysia. Ad Astra and Inngot have been appointed as WIPO’s technical partners in Malaysia to provide advisory support for the IP-finance pilot scheme’s implementation.

Inngot’s CEO, Martin Brassell, who has been working with WIPO and other bodies on promoting IP-backed finance initiatives around the world, says: “Having supported these WIPO initiatives for some time, including authoring the recent published WIPO guidance for SMEs on preparing for IP-backed finance, I’m delighted to support this important initiative in Malaysia. Inngot has been working on building IP and intangible awareness in the country since 2013.”

Martin adds: “It was great that WIPO DG Daren Tang was able to be present in person to sign this MoU with the Malaysian bank MIDF, with whom we’ve already enjoyed productive discussions. And special congratulations to our tireless partners at Adastra IP!”

Globally, intangible investments have reached nearly US $8 trillion in 2024, outpacing tangible investments by a factor of three. This shift underscores the need for financing models that recognise intellectual property and intangible assets as critical drivers of enterprise value, to help IP-rich companies with few tangible assets secure bank lending using their IP as collateral. At present, knowledge-intensive companies face a major gap in securing cost-effecting funding.

Through this MoU, MIDF will take the lead in bridging this gap in Malaysia, supported by WIPO’s technical assistance and knowledge transfer on IP-backed lending. MIDF’s leadership is expected to be a catalyst in inspiring other Malaysian banks to launch pilot IP finance projects.

The news of the Malaysian IP-finance pilot scheme follows close on the announcement by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region authorities of plans to launch an IP finance ‘sandbox’ to support IP rich companies in the region.