Signing Ceremony of Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) Between UMT Jaya Holdings Sdn Bhd (UMTJ) and pitchIN

PETALING JAYA, 17 July – UMT Jaya Holdings Sdn Bhd (UMTJ), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT), today signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA) with Pitch Platforms Sdn Bhd (pitchIN) to support the journey of startup companies, particularly those stemming from research by UMT lecturers and students.

In a joint media statement released today, this collaboration enables startup companies to raise funds through the pitchIN platform while receiving support and guidance throughout their fundraising journey.

UMTJ Chief Executive Officer, Dato’ Dr Ahmad Ramzi Mohamad Zubir, highlighted UMT’s extensive intellectual property portfolio comprising patents, industrial designs, innovation utilities, trademarks, proprietary rights, and trade secrets that are ripe for commercialisation. In 2023 alone, UMT registered a total of 60 intellectual property assets, including 40 products as proprietary rights, 13 as trade secrets, and 4 registered patents, with other categorizations of intellectual properties.

With these intellectual assets underutilized and not generating commercial returns, it represents a loss for UMT specifically and the country as a whole. Through this collaborative agreement, UMTJ will serve as a bridge linking UMT's startup companies with potential investors via the pitchIN platform.

pitchIN is a Digital Fundraising and Investment Hub that is registered as a Recognized Market Operator (RMO) with the Securities Commission Malaysia to offer both an Equity Crowdfunding (ECF) and Token Crowdfunding (TCF) platform. With over 177 successful ECF campaigns under their belt and more than RM325 mil raised, pitchIN continues to reach new milestones and set records through their platform.

Sam Shafie, CEO of pitchIN, said, "We are delighted to collaborate with UMTJ to support the growth of startups originating from UMT's research. This partnership not only expands access to the alternative financing for UMTJ's startup companies but also helps commercialize existing intellectual assets."

At the same time, this agreement also introduces an initiative to assist UMT's startup companies, namely the Fundraising Accelerator (FA), an entrepreneurship program launched by pitchIN Academy since October 2022. This initiative will provide the necessary guidance on the knowledge and skills required for the UMT startup founders to successfully raise funds for their businesses.

Present were YBbhg. Dato’ Dzulkifli Mahmud, Chairman of the UMTJ Committee, YBrs. Prof. ChM Dr. Marinah Mohd Ariffin, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research & Innovation) of UMT, and Xelia Tong, the COO of pitchIN.