# Permodalan Nasional Berhad: The Manager Behind ASB and ASN

> Entity page for Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) and its unit trust manager ASNB — what makes ASB and ASN's constant RM1-a-unit pricing different from an ordinary equity fund, and the eligibility rules that apply before you can open an account.

- Category: economy
- Language: en
- Status: published
- Updated: 2026-07-24
- Canonical: https://negaraku.md/en/economy/pnb

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## At a glance

| | |
| --- | --- |
| Name | Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) |
| Founded | 17 March 1978, as part of Malaysia's New Economic Policy |
| Mandate | To enhance the economic wealth of the Bumiputera community and all Malaysians |
| AUM | RM364 billion (as at end-2025, up 4.5% year-on-year) |
| Unit trust manager | Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB), a wholly-owned subsidiary, established 22 May 1979 |
| Funds managed by ASNB | 18 unit trust funds, roughly 280 billion units in circulation across more than 15 million accounts, held by about 13 million unique account holders |
| Flagship fund | Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB), a fixed-price fund launched 2 January 1990 |
| Variable-price fund covered here | Amanah Saham Nasional (ASN), launched 20 April 1981 |
| Trustee for ASB and ASN | AmanahRaya Trustees Berhad |
| Registration numbers | PNB: 197801001190 (38218-X); ASNB: 197901003200 (47457-V) |
| Website | `pnb.com.my` / `asnb.com.my` |

Every year in December, a single number — 5.75 sen, say — makes the news as
"the ASB dividend." What that headline skips is that ASB's unit price itself
never moved. That is the whole point of a fixed-price fund, and it is what
separates PNB's flagship products from an ordinary unit trust.

## PNB manages; ASNB sells

PNB does not open your account or take your RM10. That is ASNB's job.

PNB is the investment manager: it decides where the money in each fund is
invested — Bursa Malaysia-listed equities, unlisted holdings, fixed income,
money market instruments — and it is the holding company that owns ASNB
outright. ASNB is the unit trust management company: it is the entity named
as "Manager" on every prospectus and Product Highlights Sheet, the one that
issues units, processes repurchases, and runs the 32 branch offices and more
than 2,700 agents nationwide (Maybank, CIMB, RHB, BSN, Pos Malaysia and
others) where Malaysians actually transact.

This split matters for one practical reason: complaints, account queries and
transactions go to ASNB, not PNB. PNB's own role is upstream — investment
strategy and capital allocation — visible mainly through the annual income
distribution ASNB declares on PNB's behalf.

## Two pricing models, one manager

ASNB's 18 funds split into two families that behave in fundamentally
different ways: six are fixed-price funds, the other twelve are variable-price.

| | Fixed-price funds | Variable-price funds |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Examples | ASB, Amanah Saham Malaysia (ASM) | ASN, ASN Equity, ASN Imbang, ASN Sara |
| Unit price | Permanently RM1.00 | Moves with net asset value (NAV) |
| How you gain | Annual income distribution, in sen per unit | Capital return (NAV movement) plus any income distribution |
| Priced how often | Not applicable — the price does not change | NAV per unit on forward pricing, valued after the close of Bursa Malaysia business |
| Sales charge | None (for ASB) | Up to 5% of NAV per unit for ASN (may be lowered at the Manager's discretion) |

The distinction is not cosmetic. A fixed-price fund's RM1.00 valuation is set
by the fund's deed, not by daily mark-to-market — ASNB's own disclosure is
explicit that this is "not a capital guaranteed or capital protected fund
under the Guidelines." The fund can still lose money in a bad year; it just
shows up as a lower (or zero) distribution rather than a falling unit price.
A variable-price fund like ASN, by contrast, is priced exactly like a
conventional equity unit trust — its NAV per unit can fall below what an
investor paid.

## ASB: eligibility, limits and the numbers behind the headline

ASB is Bumiputera-restricted, but the eligible category is broader than
"Bumiputera" alone. Under ASNB's published eligibility for the Akaun Dewasa
(adult account):

- Malaysian Bumiputera individuals aged 18 and above; or
- Malaysian citizens aged 18 and above of Siamese/Thai descent, Portuguese/Eurasian
  descent, or non-Bumiputera Muslim converts.

A guardian from either eligible category may also open an **Akaun Remaja** for
a Malaysian minor (valid birth certificate, under 18). A Remaja cannot request
a redemption until age 12, and even then is capped at 200 units a week; the
account converts automatically to an Akaun Dewasa once the minor reaches the
age of majority.

Transaction terms, as published by ASNB:

| | ASB |
| --- | --- |
| Minimum initial investment | RM10 |
| Minimum additional investment | RM1 |
| Maximum investment | 300,000 units per Akaun Dewasa; 300,000 units per Akaun Remaja |
| Sales charge | None |
| Repurchase charge | None |
| EPF Members Investment Scheme | Not applicable — ASB cannot be bought using EPF withdrawal funds |
| Annual management fee | 0.35% p.a. of the fund's value (deed allows up to 1.0%) |

The 300,000-unit ceiling is not the original design: the limit for ASB and
ASB 2 was raised to RM300,000 from RM200,000 starting in 2023, announced by
PNB alongside Budget 2023. Reinvested distributions or units inherited from a
deceased unitholder can push a holder's balance above the cap without
breaching it.

For the financial year ending 31 December 2025, ASNB declared a total income
distribution of 5.75 sen per unit for ASB — a RM10.4 billion payout benefiting
11.4 million unitholders, and the highest quantum of annual distribution paid
since ASB's 1990 inception, bringing cumulative distributions to RM206.7
billion. The 2023–2025 distributions were 5.25, 5.75 and 5.75 sen per unit —
that is, 5.25%, 5.75% and 5.75% on the RM1.00 unit — each above the Maybank
12-month fixed deposit benchmark used for comparison (2.84%, 2.59% and 2.29%
over the same years).

## ASN: the same manager, a different structure

ASN was launched on 20 April 1981, roughly nine years before
ASB. Its eligibility is narrower than ASB's: Malaysian Bumiputera individuals
aged 18 and above, or a guardian applying for an eligible Bumiputera minor —
it does not extend to the Siamese/Thai, Portuguese/Eurasian or convert
categories that ASB does.

Structurally, ASN is a growth-oriented equity fund priced at NAV, not a
fixed-price fund:

| | ASN |
| --- | --- |
| Minimum initial investment | RM10 |
| Minimum additional investment | RM1 |
| Maximum investment | Unlimited |
| Sales charge | Up to 5% of NAV per unit; may be lowered at the Manager's discretion (2.0% online) |
| Repurchase charge | None |
| Cooling-off period | 6 business days for first-time investors in any ASNB variable-price fund |
| Benchmark | 80% FBM 100 Index (FTSE Bursa Malaysia Top 100), 20% Maybank 12-month fixed deposit |

For FY2025, ASN's net distribution was 1.81 sen per unit, with an annual
total return of -0.14% against a benchmark return of -0.47% — a reminder
that, unlike ASB, ASN's total return can and does turn negative, because its
unit price is not fixed.

## Common mistakes

- **Treating ASB like a savings account.** It is a unit trust fund authorised
  by the Securities Commission Malaysia, not a bank deposit — it is not a
  capital guaranteed or capital protected fund, and the distribution rate is
  not guaranteed.
- **Assuming ASB and ASN share the same eligibility.** ASB's Akaun Dewasa
  extends to specific non-Bumiputera categories (Siamese/Thai descent,
  Portuguese/Eurasian descent, Muslim converts); ASN does not.
- **Confusing "fixed price" with "fixed return."** The RM1.00 unit price is
  fixed; the annual distribution rate is not, and depends on the fund's
  realised gains each year.
- **Overlooking the investment cap.** The 300,000-unit ASB limit applies per
  account type (Akaun Dewasa and Akaun Remaja are counted separately), and
  reinvested distributions can carry a balance above the nominal cap without
  it being a breach.

## What's next

- Where PNB's equity holdings actually trade: [Bursa Malaysia](/en/economy/bursa-malaysia)
- The central bank whose deposit-taking framework ASB does *not* sit under: [Bank Negara Malaysia](/en/economy/bank-negara-malaysia)
- The other major Bumiputera-linked savings pool, and why ASB isn't part of it: [EPF](/en/glossary/epf)
- Where the 2023 investment-limit increase was announced: [the federal budget](/en/economy/federal-budget)
- Read the fund-level detail yourself at [ASNB's product pages](https://www.asnb.com.my) or PNB's own site at [pnb.com.my](https://www.pnb.com.my).

## Sources

- Who We Are — About Us — https://www.pnb.com.my/en/about-us-en (Permodalan Nasional Berhad)
- PNB Group — ASNB — https://www.pnb.com.my/en/asnb-en (Permodalan Nasional Berhad)
- PNB Declares 5.75 Sen in FY2025 Income Distribution for ASB, Sustaining Record Payout to Its Unitholders — https://www.pnb.com.my/sites/default/files/2025-12/Income%20Distribution%20ASB-website.pdf (Permodalan Nasional Berhad)
- ASB and ASB 2 Investment Limit Increased to RM300,000 — https://www.pnb.com.my/themes/pnb/assets/pdf/press_release/2022/7%20October.pdf (Permodalan Nasional Berhad)
- Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) — Fund Information — https://www.asnb.com.my/product/amanah-saham-bumiputera (Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad)
- Amanah Saham Nasional (ASN) — Fund Information — https://www.asnb.com.my/product/amanah-saham-nasional (Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad)
- Amanah Saham Bumiputera "ASB" Product Highlights Sheet — https://www.bsn.com.my/cms/upload/pdf/personal/wealth/asnb/fixed/2025/phs_asb.pdf (Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad)
- Amanah Saham Nasional "ASN" Product Highlights Sheet — https://www.bsn.com.my/cms/upload/pdf/personal/wealth/asnb/variable/2026/phs_asn.pdf (Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad)

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