Retail investors are moving towards investing offshore as part of their strategies to grow investment options, CIMB Group Holdings Bhd group chief executive Nazir Abdul Razak said today.

He said for the past 18 months, retail investors had been investing offshore through many networks, including CIMB.

"That's a growth area. It may not make Bursa Malaysia terribly happy but at the end, retail investors are growing their investment options.

nazir razak "The United States and Asean had been the top offshore destinations," he told reporters after delivering the keynote address at the CIMB Private Banking Second Annual Investment Conference in Kuala Lumpur today.

Nazir was commenting on the lack of participation by retail investors in the local bourse.

A recent Bursa Malaysia's report 'Rethink Retail' showed that 61 per cent of the potential retail investors did not know how to invest in equity markets.

Furthermore, 48 per cent of non-investors cited high risks as the main reason for their non-participation in the stock market.

Nazir said through the revival of CIMB Securities brand, the group was growing the number of remisiers to 1,000 across the region as part of its strategy to encourage more retail investor participation in the local bourse.

- Bernama