Hong Leong Bank Onboards Social Enterprise ‘Primus Wellness’

Kuala Lumpur, 14 November 2023 – Hong Leong Bank (“HLB” or the “Bank”) has announced its collaboration with Primus Wellness, the Bank’s newest social enterprise onboarded through HLB Jumpstart, its entrepreneurship-focused CSR platform. With Primus Wellness being the sixth social enterprise on the platform, the Bank looks to further boost its Community Investment portfolio as part of its ESG commitments to promote entrepreneurship, financial inclusion, and financial literacy among the community.

Primus Wellness is a social enterprise led by entrepreneur Selvamalar Selvaraju, dedicated to promoting holistic wellness and providing business opportunities to individuals and families who lost their jobs during the COVID-19 pandemic, allowing them to generate a sustainable income. They focus on creating their own holistic wellness products using moringa leaves from their own 35-acre farm in Kalumpang, Selangor, which are sold by their beneficiaries directly to customers.

Through HLB Jumpstart, the Bank will be providing Primus Wellness with the guidance, networks and platform needed to empower over 2000 beneficiaries with new income generation opportunities. The Bank looks to facilitate Primus Wellness and their beneficiaries going digital, providing digital banking products and solutions such as DuitNow QR codes to enable seamless cashless payments. Subsequently, the Bank will help set up an eCommerce platform for the social enterprise to cater to the digital savvy generation and establish an additional purchasing stream for customers, in addition to generating marketing and publicity to help build brand awareness.

Additionally, HLB will offer business management guidance as well as smart money management tips to Primus Wellness and its beneficiaries through various targeted financial literacy programs.  

Kevin Lam, Group Managing Director and CEO of Hong Leong Bank shared that the Bank is committed to supporting entrepreneurs, businesses, and social enterprises in their business journey, and hopes that this becomes a win-win partnership that will grow to greater heights.

“We believe that SMEs and social enterprises are the backbone of the Malaysian economy, and as a financial institution, we want to support these businesses towards achieving shared success and prosperity. Primus Wellness has provided business opportunities for over 2000 beneficiaries, which perfectly exemplifies our entrepreneurial spirit and reflects our aspiration to grow and support small businesses. Guided by our commitment to being “Built Around You”, we want to leverage our entrepreneurial knowledge, resources and expertise to support more businesses and social enterprises to expand their operations, further their cause and create more positive impact throughout the community.

Zalman Zainal, Chief Marketing and Communication Officer of Hong Leong Bank also commented, “Through our HLB Jumpstart initiative, we look to support entrepreneurs and social enterprises by upgrading and futureproofing their operations with personalized,   financial solutions. . We also provide business and financial advisory, especially in the areas of digitalization and ESG-compliance, and help with branding and brand awareness, allowing our social enterprises to expand their marketing and sales channels. 

Primus Wellness has an inspiring story, and one that we can resonate with. We are looking forward to embarking on this collaboration and further empower them to create lasting positive impact in the business and social enterprise community.” 

On top of producing moringa-based wellness products, Primus Wellness has also started a second initiative “Pasar Pintu”, which involves working directly with farmers across the country to obtain fresh produce and sell them at affordable prices at PPR flats. This initiative covers three main aspects, namely empowering families to generate an alternate source of income, encouraging a lifestyle focused on health and wellness, as well as contributing to the economy.

Selvamalar Selvaraju, the founder of Primus Wellness, expressed her gratitude and excitement to  work with HLB.

"Being part of the HLB Jumpstart family is a significant milestone for Primus Wellness. It reaffirms our commitment to our mission of improving wellness and livelihoods throughout the community. This is especially meaningful to be launched in conjunction with Deepavali, which is a celebration of community, togetherness, and bringing light to the underserved. Together with Hong Leong Bank, we hope to continue illuminating lives and uplifting communities by increasing income and generating new business opportunities for our beneficiaries."

To find out more about Primus Wellness, please visit https://primuswellness.com.my/ .

Their story is also featured in the Bank’s Deepavali video, which can be found here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNitIDgRt3k