Dato’ Zainal Abidin Putih, aged 78, a Malaysian, was appointed as Non-Independent Non-Executive Chairman of TM on 1 August 2023.

He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW), as well as a member of the Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) and the Malaysian Institute of Certified Public Accountants (MICPA).

Dato’ Zainal was formerly the Country Managing Partner of Messrs Hanafiah Raslan and Mohamad and was an Adviser with Messrs Ernst & Young Malaysia until his retirement in 2005. He brings with him decades of extensive experience in audit, having worked as a practising accountant throughout his career covering many principal industries including banks, insurance, energy, transport, manufacturing, Government agencies, plantations, properties, hotels, investment companies and unit trusts. He also has good knowledge of taxation matters and management consultancy, especially in the areas of acquisition, takeovers, amalgamations, restructuring and public listing of companies.

He is currently the Chairman of Yayasan Telekom Malaysia (YTM) and several other companies including Land & General Berhad and Tokio Marine Insurance (Malaysia) Berhad. He also sits on the boards of several private limited companies.

Dato’ Zainal also serves as the current Chairman of Financial Reporting Foundation and a Trustee of IJN Foundation. He was previously a Director of Khazanah Nasional Berhad, CIMB Bank Berhad, Dutch Lady Milk Industries Berhad, Pengurusan Danaharta Nasional Berhad, Petron Malaysia Refining & Marketing Berhad and Touch ‘n Go Sdn Bhd. He was formerly the President of MICPA and Chairman of the Malaysia Accounting Standards Board, a member of the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) and Investment Panel of Employees Provident Fund (EPF).