Sime Darby was a diversified Malaysian conglomerate until a 2017 demerger split it into three separately listed Bursa Malaysia companies: Sime Darby Berhad (now branded Sime, focused on automotive and industrial equipment), Sime Darby Plantation Berhad (oil palm, rebranded SD Guthrie Berhad in 2024), and Sime Darby Property Berhad (real estate). Each now trades and operates independently, though state investment fund Permodalan Nasional Berhad remains a major shareholder across them.
- Sime Darby Plantation and Sime Darby Property were listed on Bursa Malaysia's Main Market on 30 November 2017, completing the demerger of the old conglomerate.
- Sime Darby Berhad expanded in automotive by acquiring UMW Holdings — a 61.18% stake for RM3.574 billion completed on 13 December 2023, reaching 100% ownership for RM5.84 billion on 21 March 2024.
- Sime Darby Plantation rebranded as SD Guthrie Berhad after shareholders approved the change on 28 May 2024 (99.99% in favour), ending a brand-licence fee it paid to Sime Darby Berhad.
- In November 2024 Sime Darby Berhad rebranded to 'Sime', with Sime Darby Motors becoming Sime Motors and UMW becoming Sime UMW.
Who this applies to: Readers, investors and researchers trying to understand how the historic Sime Darby conglomerate maps to three distinct listed companies today.
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One of Malaysia’s oldest corporate names is now three companies, not one.
What is Sime Darby today?
Sime Darby began as a pair of colonial-era trading and plantation houses and grew into a sprawling Malaysian conglomerate. In a 2017 demerger it was split into three separately listed businesses, each anchored to a core activity: motors and industrial equipment, oil palm plantations, and property development.
The three companies still share the Sime Darby heritage and a common major shareholder, but they are independently listed on Bursa Malaysia and run their own boards and strategies.
Where did Sime Darby come from?
The lineage runs deep. Guthrie & Co was founded in Singapore in 1821 by Alexander Guthrie, described as the first British trading company in South East Asia. In October 1910, William Sime and Henry Darby established Sime, Darby and Co. in the rubber trade. (These founding dates are widely reported but should be confirmed against a primary heritage source.)
In January 2007 three Malaysian plantation groups — Sime Darby, Kumpulan Guthrie and Golden Hope — merged into a vehicle called Synergy Drive, which was renamed Sime Darby Berhad. That created the modern conglomerate. A milestone in that lineage came in 1981, when Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) wrested control of Guthrie, bringing one of the industry’s giants under Malaysian control.
What did the 2017 demerger create?
In November 2017, Sime Darby Berhad separately listed two of its subsidiaries — Sime Darby Plantation Berhad and Sime Darby Property Berhad — on Bursa Malaysia’s Main Market on 30 November 2017. The result was three stand-alone listed companies, ending the old conglomerate structure. Sime Darby Berhad was the least focused of the three at that point: alongside its motors and industrial-equipment core it retained trading, logistics and healthcare businesses, which it later moved to divest.
| Company | Core business | Ticker (verify) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sime Darby Berhad (now “Sime”) | Automotive and industrial equipment | SIME | Distributes luxury marques and Caterpillar equipment; acquired UMW Holdings |
| SD Guthrie Berhad (formerly Sime Darby Plantation) | Oil palm plantations and downstream | SIMEPLT | Rebranded from Sime Darby Plantation in 2024 |
| Sime Darby Property Berhad | Real estate development | SIMEPROP | Among Malaysia’s largest listed property developers by land bank |
What does each company do now?
Sime Darby Berhad, rebranded to “Sime” in November 2024, concentrates on automotive retail and industrial equipment. It is a regional distributor of premium car brands and a long-standing Caterpillar dealer. In 2023–2024 it acquired UMW Holdings: through subsidiary Sime Darby Enterprise it completed the purchase of a 61.18% stake from PNB for RM3.574 billion on 13 December 2023, then reached 100% ownership on 21 March 2024 for a total of RM5.84 billion. UMW brings mass-market vehicle brands including Toyota and Perodua, substantially enlarging Sime’s automotive footprint. In the November 2024 rebrand, Sime Darby Motors became Sime Motors and UMW became Sime UMW, with the group positioning itself as a “pure-play powerhouse in the automotive and industrial equipment segments.”
SD Guthrie Berhad is the former Sime Darby Plantation, one of the world’s largest oil palm plantation companies by planted area. Shareholders approved the rebrand on 28 May 2024, with 99.99% in favour. As a demerged company it had paid an annual fee to Sime Darby Berhad under a Brand and Trademark Licensing Agreement; the new name — rooted in the Guthrie heritage that PNB brought under Malaysian control in 1981 — ends that fee and gives it full ownership of its identity.
Sime Darby Property Berhad develops townships and communities and is among Malaysia’s largest listed property developers by land bank, with holdings spanning Selangor to Johor and a development pipeline built over more than five decades.
Why does this structure matter?
The demerger let investors buy exposure to a single sector rather than a blended conglomerate, and gave each management team clearer accountability. It also explains why “Sime Darby” heritage now sits across three different Bursa Malaysia tickers.
Ownership ties remain: Malaysian state investment fund Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) is a major shareholder across the group, and PNB was the seller of the UMW stake that Sime Darby Berhad acquired. Exact shareholding percentages change over time and should be checked against each company’s latest Bursa Malaysia filings.
What’s next
Sime Darby Berhad is integrating UMW under the new Sime UMW and Sime Motors brands, consolidating a large share of Malaysia’s automotive market. SD Guthrie continues its plantation and downstream strategy under its own identity. Sime Darby Property continues to monetise its large land bank. Figures such as revenue, market capitalisation and current shareholding percentages change frequently and should be checked against each company’s latest Bursa Malaysia filings and annual reports.
Is Sime Darby one company or three?
Since the 2017 demerger there are three separately listed companies: Sime Darby Berhad (now branded Sime), Sime Darby Property Berhad, and the former Sime Darby Plantation Berhad (now SD Guthrie Berhad). They share heritage and a major shareholder but are independently listed and managed.
Why did Sime Darby Plantation change its name to SD Guthrie?
As a demerged company it operated under a Brand and Trademark Licensing Agreement, paying an annual fee to Sime Darby Berhad to use the 'Sime Darby' name. Rebranding to SD Guthrie — a name rooted in the Guthrie trading house that PNB brought under Malaysian control in 1981 — gave it full control of its identity and ended that fee.
Who owns Sime Darby?
Malaysian state investment fund Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) is a major shareholder across the Sime Darby companies, and PNB was the seller of the UMW stake that Sime Darby Berhad acquired. Exact shareholding percentages change over time and should be checked against each company's latest Bursa Malaysia filings.
The following are deliberately unstated or described only qualitatively until confirmed by a subject-matter expert:
- Founding dates for Guthrie & Co (1821) and Sime, Darby and Co. (1910), and the January 2007 Synergy Drive merger date — confirm against a primary/company-heritage source; not independently re-fetched in this pass.
- Current Bursa Malaysia stock short names / ticker codes for all three companies (draft shows SIME, SIMEPLT, SIMEPROP) — the plantation company's short name changed with the SD Guthrie rebrand; confirm from Bursa.
- PNB's exact current shareholding percentage in each of the three companies — confirm from latest annual reports / Bursa filings.
- Whether Sime Darby Property is the single 'largest' listed developer by land bank versus 'one of the largest' — confirm the ranking and current land-bank acreage from an authoritative source.
- Whether Sime Darby Berhad had, by the Nov 2024 rebrand, fully divested the trading, logistics and healthcare businesses it retained at the 2017 demerger.
Sources
- Sime to acquire remaining stake in UMW / completes 61.18% acquisition — Paul Tan's Automotive News (paultan.org)
- Sime Darby completes 100% UMW acquisition for RM5.8bil — Free Malaysia Today
- Sime Darby Motors becomes Sime Motors following group's rebranding — UMW now known as Sime UMW — Paul Tan's Automotive News (paultan.org)
- Sime Darby Plantation rebrands to SD Guthrie — The Star
- Sime Darby Plantation Rebrands to SD Guthrie — SD Guthrie Berhad
- Strong debut by Sime Darby but plantations, property fall (30 Nov 2017 listing) — The Star
- About Us (land bank / developer positioning) — Sime Darby Property Berhad
Change history
| Version | Date | Change | By |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01.00 | 28 Jul 2026 | Approved and published. | — |