Malaysian government-linked private equity company Ekuiti Nasional Berhad (Ekuinas) has announced an investment of 37 million ringgit ($7.9 million) in Mizou Holdings (Mizou), a local company specialising in agricultural machinery for the upstream palm oil sector.
Ekuinas said the investment is part of its 100 million ringgit ($21 million) Dana Asas fund, which focuses on high-growth and mid-market companies owned by Bumiputeras — a term denoting the indigenous ethnic groups in the country.
Ekuinas CEO Syed Yasir Arafat Syed Abd Kadir said the investment would help Mizou strengthen its position in the market and capitalise on growing local and regional demand for mechanised equipment in the palm oil sector.
“Mizou’s successful commercialisation of their tractors and buy-in from key plantation players reflects both product and business viability and we anticipate bright prospects ahead,” he added.
Founded in 2001, Mizou has developed and commercialised 11 variants of specialised tractors for different palm oil plantation terrains. The company also offers tractors with fertiliser spreader and sprayer implements and is developing new models for estate maintenance and harvesting.
The company primarily serves Malaysia and has made inroads into Indonesia.
The Mizou investment marks the second deal under Ekuinas’s Dana Asas fund, which was launched in March 2023.
As of 2021, Ekuinas had committed a total of 4.4 billion ringgit ($940 million) since its inception in 2009, per its annual reports. It has invested in 42 local companies to date including sportswear retailer Al-Ikhsan Sports, internet hosting company Exabytes as well as consumer products and electronics manufacturer Flexi Versa Group.
Ekuinas’s target sectors are education, fast-moving consumer goods, oil and gas, retail, healthcare, and services.