KUALA LUMPUR (Apr 16): K & N Kenanga Holdings Bhd, which owns Kenanga Investment Bank Bhd (KIBB), is partnering the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) to improve the financial services entity's corporate governance and internal control.

In a press release today, K & N Kenanga (fundamental: 1.8; valuation: 1.65) group managing director Datuk Chay Wai Leong said the partnership with ACFE indicated that Kenanga was reinforcing its commitment to increase anti-fraud knowledge and certification among its employees

“We are honoured to be the first Southeast Asian company to be a part of the world’s largest anti-fraud organisation.

“Kenanga takes its role in the fight against fraud seriously as this is one of the pivotal keys to firmly maintain the overall confidence of investors in the financial system,” Chay said.

Citing ACFE's findings, Chay said organisations worldwide lost an estimated 5% of their revenue each year to fraud.

He said it took them an average of 18 months to discover a fraud after it occurred.

"By joining the ACFE Corporate Alliance, Kenanga Group is signaling a proactive approach to the prevention, detection and deterrence of fraud," Chay said.

K & N Kenanga shares drop as much as 0.5 sen or 0.8% to 62 sen at 11am with 16,000 shares changing hands. At 62 sen, the group has a market value of RM453.7 million.

(Note: The Edge Research's fundamental score reflects a company’s profitability and balance sheet strength, calculated based on historical numbers. The valuation score determines if a stock is attractively valued or not, also based on historical numbers. A score of 3 suggests strong fundamentals and attractive valuations.)