Malaysia’s moment in the sun

Malaysia will almost certainly miss its lofty goal of becoming a developed nation by 2020, as even senior politicians admit, but this has nevertheless been a banner year for the country.

Two of the world’s biggest equity capital markets deals this year came from Malaysia the initial public offerings of Felda and IHH, which raised more than $5 billion in total and have become a source of pride for local bankers and politicians.

“This is our moment in the sun,” said Tajuddin Atan, chief executive of Bursa Malaysia, at a lunch held recently in Hong Kong to promote trade with the country and spread the good...