One Year Review ASNB Ria (Robo Investment Advisor)

Launch of Ria: A New Era of Automated Investing

In early 2024, Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad (ASNB) introduced Ria, its Robo Investment Advisor, as a new feature in the myASNB mobile app. This digital investing service was designed to make investing easy and accessible for all Malaysians, addressing common hurdles like lack of financial knowledge and high minimum investment for diversified portfolios.

Ria was soft launched via the myASNB app in March 2024, and quickly garnered attention for its aim to simplify investing. It culminated in an official launch event on May 4, 2024, held at IOI City Mall in Putrajaya, where it was officiated by Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) Group Chairman YM Raja Tan Sri Dato’ Seri Arshad Raja Tun Uda. This launch marked a significant step in PNB’s mission to “uplift the financial lives of Malaysians” by leveraging technology for inclusive investment solutions.

The reception to Ria’s launch was encouraging. Within weeks, tens of thousands of users explored the new service. By May 2, 2024 (just about two months from its introduction), around 60,000 myASNB app users had registered for Ria, and about 16,000–17,000 of them had already invested a combined RM6 million through the platform. This early traction demonstrated a strong appetite among Malaysians for a user-friendly, automated investing tool. One year later Ria’s momentum remains impressive.

PNB even set up booths during the launch roadshow to educate visitors about Ria, reflecting its purpose not only to provide a service but also to inspire and educate Malaysians on the importance of investing. In short, Ria’s launch was both a celebration of a new digital initiative and the beginning of a journey to empower individuals to take charge of their financial future. As of 31 March 2025, the platform has onboarded more than 262,000 registered users, of whom over 82,000 are active, with assets under management (AUM) of approximately RM56 million.

Official launch of Ria gimmick at IOI City Mall, Putrajaya on 4 May 2024.

How Ria Works and What it Offers Investors

Ria is essentially an automated investment manager built into the myASNB app. It works by using advanced algorithms (relying on principles of modern portfolio theory) to create and manage a personalized portfolio for each investor. When a user signs up for Ria, the app guides them through a risk profiling questionnaire to understand their comfort with investment risk and their financial goals. Based on the individual’s answers, Ria will assign one of six pre-defined risk profiles, ranging from Very Conservative (lowest risk) to Very Aggressive (highest risk).

Each profile corresponds to a different asset allocation across ASNB’s unit trust funds. For example, a very conservative profile leans heavily on safer assets like ASN Sukuk (Islamic bond fund), whereas an aggressive profile includes more equity funds (such as ASN Equity Global and ASN Equity Malaysia) for higher growth potential. Ria then automatically invests your money into a curated mix of ASNB’s unit trust funds according to that profile. This means you don’t have to pick individual funds yourself – Ria does the selection for you, aiming to suggest the “best investment portfolio based on your risk profile.”

Ria recommends a suitable investment portfolio that aligns with investor’s risk profile.

Once your portfolio is set up, Ria continues to manage it actively yet automatically. It performs automatic rebalancing over time, which means it will adjust the proportions of your investment periodically to maintain the target asset allocation as markets move. This ensures your portfolio stays aligned with your risk level and long-term goals without you needing to manually rebalance. For instance, if stock markets have risen and your portfolio has become more equity-heavy than intended, Ria will trim some equity and/or add to sukuk to get back to the right balance.

Similarly, Ria reinvests dividends from the funds back into your portfolio, so your earnings compound over time. All of this happens behind the scenes, making the investing experience hands-off and convenient for the user. Ria’s intuitive risk profiling and automation make investing accessible to everyone, regardless of their experience or financial background. In essence, Ria serves as a digital fund manager that handles the heavy lifting, while you remain in control of setting your preferences and contributions.

Investors can start small with Ria, which is a key benefit. The minimum initial investment is just RM100, and additional investments can be as low as RM100 per transaction. This low barrier to entry encourages first-time investors to begin investing with manageable amounts. It addresses the common concern of high minimum investments – one of the challenges Ria was designed to overcome. Once the account is set up, adding money is easy and flexible. The myASNB app supports local payment methods (FPX online banking, etc.), and Ria is available in both Bahasa Malaysia and English to cater to all users.

Investors can top up their Ria portfolio anytime. Moreover, Ria includes an Auto Labur feature, which lets you schedule recurring investments (for example, monthly deductions) into your portfolio automatically. This is a “auto-debit” convenience – you can set it and let Ria regularly invest a fixed amount for you, a habit that can build your savings steadily. By automating deposits and investments, Ria helps investors stay disciplined in contributing towards their goals without needing to remember to transact each time.

From a regulatory and security standpoint, users can also feel confident using Ria. It is offered by ASNB (which is a subsidiary of PNB, one of Malaysia’s largest fund management companies) and licensed by the Securities Commission Malaysia as a Digital Investment Manager. In practice, this means Ria operates under strict regulatory guidelines to protect investors. All the underlying unit trust funds are managed by ASNB and adhere to required standards. Notably, the portfolios comprise ASNB’s own unit trust funds, which have a long track record focusing on Malaysian and global equities as well as sukuk. This local expertise is a differentiator for Ria compared to other robo-advisors – it’s backed by a reputable national fund institution with more than 40 years of experience in investments.

Additionally, for Muslim investors, it’s important to note that investing via Ria is permissible (harus) by the Muzakarah of Fatwa Committee of National Council for Islamic Religious Affairs Malaysia and all State Fatwa Committees.

Tips for Getting the Most Out of Ria

For ASNB unitholders (and new investors alike), making the most of Ria involves a few simple steps and good habits:

• Start Small and Early: Since the minimum is only RM100, you can begin right away without waiting to accumulate a large sum. The earlier you start investing, the more time your money has to grow. Even small amounts can add up over time due to compounding.

• Be Honest in Your Risk Assessment: Ria’s suggestions are only as good as the information you provide. When answering the risk profiling questionnaire, consider your true risk tolerance and financial goals. This ensures Ria assigns you the appropriate portfolio – one that you’ll be comfortable sticking with through market ups and downs.

• Use Auto Labur for Consistent Investing: Take advantage of Ria’s automated recurring investment feature. Setting up an Auto Labur (auto-debit) schedule, such as monthly contributions on payday, helps you invest consistently without missing a beat. Regular contributions can smooth out the cost of investments over time (ringgit-cost averaging) and build your portfolio steadily.

• Stay Invested for the Long Term: Ria is designed for long-term investment growth, not short-term trading. Once your portfolio is set, try to remain invested and resist the urge to withdraw at the first sign of market fluctuations. The automatic rebalancing will handle market changes for you. History shows that staying invested through market cycles is key to achieving higher returns. Ria’s portfolios are meant to weather short-term volatility in pursuit of long-term gains, so give your investments time to grow.

• Monitor Occasionally, But Don’t Panic: It’s easy to check your portfolio through the myASNB app, and you’ll see updates of your portfolio value. While it’s good to be aware of performance, you don’t need to constantly tinker or worry. If your circumstances or goals change, you can always retake the risk assessment or adjust your contributions, but otherwise let Ria do its work. Remember that higher-risk portfolios will have more ups and downs – that is normal. Ria’s approach already accounts for this by diversifying your investments.

By following these practices, investors can fully utilize Ria’s capabilities. Essentially, Ria encourages a “invest and relax” approach: you put in what you can, and the system handles the complex task of portfolio management. ASNB also provides ongoing investor education (for example, through the ASNB Academy articles and tips within the app) to help users understand their investments better. With Ria, even those with minimal financial knowledge can start investing and learn along the way, with a professional framework supporting their decisions. It’s a user-friendly way to grow your wealth, as long as you stay engaged by contributing and letting the automated process work in your favor.

Ria’s First Year Portfolio Performance (March 2024 – March 2025)

One year on, how have Ria’s portfolios performed? Overall, Ria delivered positive returns across all risk profiles in its first year, though the outcomes varied according to each portfolio’s risk level (as expected). Since Ria invests in a mix of funds, the performance of each portfolio reflects the market conditions for Malaysian and global stocks and bonds over the year. Here’s a summary of the performance highlights from Ria’s launch in March 2024 up to March 2025:

• Steady Start: In the initial months after launch, the portfolios saw modest gains. For example, by May 2024 the Very Conservative portfolio (heavily weighted in sukuk) had returned about +0.83%, thanks largely to the stable but modest profit from ASN Sukuk (which returned +0.71% in that period). This conservative option, while not high in return, showed low volatility – it inched up as intended. Meanwhile, the more aggressive portfolios were already outperforming the conservative ones in that early period to as much as +6.18% (for the Very Aggressive portfolio), as they benefited from rising equity markets. Higher risk means a larger share in equity funds, which can boost returns when stock prices climb. In short, all Ria profiles started in positive territory, demonstrating the value of diversification and the favorable market trend in early 2024.

• Strong Mid-2024 Gains: As 2024 progressed, global and local equity markets generally performed well, and Ria’s riskier portfolios captured those gains. By the third quarter of 2024, the return differences between the lowest and highest risk portfolios were quite pronounced. Year-to-date 2024 returns (as of September) ranged from roughly +2.64% for the Very Conservative portfolio up to about +6.11% for the Aggressive portfolio. In other words, an investor who chose the most cautious Ria option saw around 3% growth by late 2024, while one who chose the highest risk option saw nearly double the growth in the same timeframe. Portfolios with middle-of-the-road risk had returns in between those extremes. These results make sense: the Very Aggressive portfolio contains a large proportion of global and Malaysian equities, which delivered strong gains during 2024, whereas the Very Conservative portfolio is mostly in fixed income (sukuk) which provided smaller, steady returns. Ria’s automatic rebalancing also helped – as equities rose, portfolios were trimmed back to target weights, effectively “locking in” some gains and controlling risk. The broad takeaway is that by late 2024, Ria investors were seeing healthy growth, especially if they accepted more risk, yet even the conservative investors earned better returns than a typical bank savings rate, all through the diversified approach.

• End of 2024 – Impressive Full-Year Results: By the end of 2024, despite some market ups and downs, all Ria portfolios closed the calendar year with positive returns. Looking at the full-year 2024 performance, the Very Aggressive Ria portfolio was the top performer, achieving approximately +20.16% for that year. This reflects how strong the equity market rally was in 2024 – a portfolio heavily in equities (and taking higher risk) reaped a ~20% annual return, which is quite impressive. On the other hand, if we consider the period from Ria’s launch in mid-March 2024 to 31 December 2024, a slightly different picture emerges: the Aggressive portfolio (one step down from Very Aggressive in risk) was actually the best performer in that specific period, with about a +9.22% gain. The Very Aggressive portfolio, while stellar over the full year, experienced more volatility and thus its return from March to December was a bit lower at +8.31% (indicating that some of its early-year gains or late-year swings evened out). Still, all the balanced and higher-risk portfolios delivered high single-digit to low double-digit percentage gains over those ~9 months. Even the most conservative Ria options likely ended 2024 with mid-single-digit percentage growth. These outcomes show that Ria’s portfolios largely met their objectives: conservative investors saw modest, stable growth, while aggressive investors who could tolerate risk were rewarded with substantially higher returns. It’s worth noting that Ria launched at a favorable time – 2024 was a growth year for equities – and the service was able to capitalize on that for its users.

• Early 2025 and One-Year Mark: Moving into 2025, the market environment became more mixed. The first quarter of 2025 brought some volatility, especially in March 2025 when global equity markets were shaken (for instance, by news of U.S. trade tariffs and other uncertainties). This volatility tested Ria’s portfolios with a dose of market turbulence. By the end of March 2025 (roughly the one-year anniversary of Ria’s introduction), the portfolios were still in positive territory on a 1-year basis, but the returns were more muted compared to 2024. The Very Aggressive portfolio was lagging somewhat, with only about a +2.05% return for the March 2024 until March 2025 period. This illustrates an important point: the highest-risk portfolio, which soared the most in good times, also felt the drag of the early-2025 market pullback. In contrast, the more conservative and balanced portfolios held up better during the March volatility – their larger allocation to sukuk (and smaller exposure to the slumping equities) meant their values didn’t swing as much. In other words, when the market turned choppy, the previously leading high-equity portfolio slowed down, and more cautious portfolios showed their resilience. This is exactly the outcome one would expect given the risk-return spectrum – it validates Ria’s approach of offering different portfolios for different risk appetites.

In summary, Ria’s first year performance has been positive and in line with market trends and risk levels. Investors who joined Ria at launch and stayed through March 2025 enjoyed returns commensurate with their chosen risk profile. For example, a very conservative investor earned around 4% over the year (much better than a fixed deposit’s interest in that period), while an aggressive investor could have earned around 2–5% (launch-to-date) or even up to 20% on an annual 2024 basis in the most extreme case. These returns underscore both the opportunities and the risks of investing: higher potential returns come with higher volatility, which Ria makes transparent through its risk profiling. It’s also noteworthy that Ria achieved these outcomes by investing exclusively in ASNB’s unit trust funds, demonstrating the competitiveness of these funds. Ria basically acted as a digital fund-of-funds manager, picking and mixing ASNB funds to achieve an optimal result for each risk category.

Growth of RM10,000 in all Ria portfolios since inception (11 March 2024) until 31 March 2025. Disclaimer: Past performance is not indicative of future returns.

Conclusion: Ria’s First Year in Review

One year after its debut, Ria has proven to be a successful addition to ASNB’s lineup, fulfilling its goal of simplifying investing for Malaysians. From the outset, it provided an accessible platform – easy signup, low entry cost, and a guided investment journey – which attracted tens of thousands of users and new investors. Over 12 months, Ria’s portfolios navigated both bullish markets and bouts of volatility, delivering outcomes that matched their intended risk-return profiles. Users have not only gained financially, but many have also gained investing experience and confidence, all through a hands-off approach that didn’t require deep financial knowledge.

Importantly, Ria’s first year also offered valuable lessons. It showed that with the right tools, everyday people can participate in capital markets and benefit from them. Investors who might have been intimidated by picking stocks or funds could rely on Ria’s recommendations and still enjoy solid returns. The diversity of results between conservative and aggressive portfolios during the year highlighted the classic risk/reward trade-off, reinforcing why knowing one’s risk appetite is so crucial – a lesson Ria imparts to each user from the start. Furthermore, the platform’s resilience and continued enhancements (such as ongoing campaigns, referral programs, and educational content via ASNB Academy) indicate that ASNB is committed to making Ria not just a one-off product, but a long-term companion for investors on their financial journey.

In reflecting the past 12 months, we believe that Ria’s one-year report card is positive. It has made investing more inclusive, allowed investors to “invest smartly with ease,” and delivered respectable portfolio growth amid real-world market conditions. Ria stands as an example of how innovation in financial services – when done by a trusted institution and tailored to the public’s needs – can truly empower individuals to build wealth. As we look ahead, existing Ria users are encouraged to remain invested and stick to their plans, while new users can take comfort in the platform’s first-year track record. With continuous improvements and the same disciplined approach, Ria is well-positioned to keep helping Malaysians achieve their financial goals in the years to come.