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PETALING JAYA: Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) will pick legal firms based on “performance, efficiency and merit”, it said yesterday when announcing a revision of its guidelines on choosing legal firms for its panel.

AmBank Group, in a separate statement, said it had not imposed any requirement that legal firms vying to be on its panel must meet a bumiputra equity quota.

The announcements came following a public outcry among some chambers of commerce, political parties and the legal fraternity, with the Bar Council saying they should be given jobs based on merit and not on racial quotas.

Maybank had earlier required law firms to have at least three partners – one of whom must be a bumiputra with a 50% stake – before they can do any business with the bank.

In a statement last night, Maybank said: “Moving forward and with immediate effect, all solicitor firms, whether with bumiputra or non-bumiputra equity ownership, are eligible for consideration.

“All other revised criteria for emplacement of solicitor firms pursuant to our annual review remain unchanged.”

It said the decision was made after reviewing the issues and concerns raised by various parties, and stressed that the selection of solicitor firms will continue to be based primarily on “performance, efficiency and merit”.

“We wish to reaffirm our commitment to serving all segments of the community and in building valued relationships with customers, shareholder, employees and the public,” it added.

Maybank had earlier explained that the ruling was being reviewed based on the feedback received. It had also said that equity ownership was not the sole determinant for emplacement in legal panels, and that it exercised flexibility on such matters.

The AmBank Group, in its statement, said no equity conditions were imposed.

“To encourage bumiputra participation in the financial services industry in respect of specialised services, the AmBank Group has always encouraged legal firms to have bumiputera partners,” it said.

“However, no restrictions or quota of shares are imposed on the equity participation of the bumiputra partners and the group does appoint legal firms that do not have bumiputra partners.

“This policy has been in place for more than two decades.”

In Boston, Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak yesterday asked the people not to misinterpret the government’s policy of encouraging government-linked companies to give business to both bumiputra and non-bumiputra companies.

“There should not be any hard and fast rules but there should be efforts to help both,” he said when asked to comment on Maybank’s earlier ruling.

In Kuala Lumpur, DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng sent a memorandum to Bank Negara, asking it to intervene in the ruling. He handed the memorandum to corporate communications director Abu Hassan Alshari Yahaya.

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