Dr. Nurul Shahnaz Ahmad Mahdzan is a Professor and served as the Head at the Department of Finance, Faculty of Business & Economics, University of Malaya from 2019-2023. She obtained her PhD from the Nottingham University Business School, UK; MBA (with Distinction) from the University of Malaya; and BBA (Finance) (Summa Cum Laude) from Ohio University, USA. Her research passion is in the area of Consumer Finances, particularly on the issues of financial behaviour and economic psychology of households - this includes their financial literacy, financial well-being, fintech adoption, financial attitudes, saving behaviour, investment risk-taking behaviour, and gullibility to financial fraud victimisation. She also has an interest in studies related to the financial services industry, particularly in insurance and risk management. Her current research project involves FinTech usage among millenials and the Gen X's and how this impacts financial well-being. Recently, she was invited as a Plenary Speaker at the National Financial Literacy Symposium (NFLS 2023) to share her views on the state of financial literacy and financial well-being among Malaysians. She has also appeared in numerous national TV, radio and print media where her views on personal finance and economic issues have been sought. She has been appointed as a panel of assessor for the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) research grants since year 2020 to date. Additionally, she has been invited to speak on several local industrial platforms on the topic of Consumer Finances. She has been invited as guest speaker at international symposiums and platforms that discuss financial and economic issues pertaining to the Malaysian context. Her deep interest and engagement in the area of Consumer Finances stems from her ten-year experience working in financial services, where she mainly dealt with consumers and their personal finances. It was then that her passion the area began and continues till today, as reflected in her research, publications and other activities.  

Dr. Lim Siew Huah is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Malaya (UM), where she specializes in Natural Products Chemistry and Bioorganic Chemistry. She earned her Ph.D. (2013), M.Sc. (2007), and B.Sc. (Hons.) (2004) from UM, and her research focuses on isolating and studying bioactive compounds from Malaysian plants, particularly alkaloids, for potential applications in health sciences and biotechnology. Dr. Lim has extensive experience in teaching both undergraduate and postgraduate students and has been actively involved in curriculum development. She teaches courses in organic chemistry and molecular spectroscopy, incorporating contemporary research findings into her teaching. She previously served as the Undergraduate Program Coordinator for the B.Sc. Chemistry program, where she oversaw academic planning and program improvements. In addition to lecturing, she supervises final-year undergraduate research projects (FYP) and mentors MSc and PhD students in organic and natural products chemistry, guiding them in phytochemical investigations and structural elucidation of bioactive compounds. Her research focuses on natural products chemistry, particularly the isolation, structural elucidation, and spectroscopic characterization of plant-derived secondary metabolites. She specializes in the study of alkaloids, employing advanced spectroscopic techniques such as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopy and mass spectrometry to determine the structures of complex natural compounds. Her work extends to the chemical modification of natural products to understand their structure-activity relationships and enhance their potential applications. Her research explores the diverse flora of Malaysia to uncover bioactive natural compounds with potential therapeutic relevance. Investigations include the structural modification of natural products to explore their chemical properties and interactions, particularly in cancer-related studies, skin brightening effects, and other health-related applications. Through her work, she contributes to the advancement of natural products chemistry and its role in biomedical research.

Lee Kean Yew (John Lee Kean Yew) was born in Jinjang New Village, Malaysia, and is of Hakka descent from Huizhou, China. He earned a PhD in Economics and Administration from the Asia-Europe Institute at the University of Malaya. Earlier in his career, he served as the Academic Director of the Centre for Malaysia Chinese Studies, conducting scholarly research on Malaysia’s Chinese community and publishing his findings in books, conference proceedings, and a bilingual journal. He is presently a senior lecturer and a full member of both the Department of Chinese Studies and the Malaysian Chinese Research Centre (MCRC) at the University of Malaya, where his research spans overseas Chinese business, cultural studies, and ethical dimensions of religion in business, as well as contemporary Buddhism. Among his responsibilities is fostering mutual understanding and facilitating collaboration between Malaysian Chinese communities and overseas enterprises. His research interests include entrepreneurial economics, innovation management, Chinese business studies, Asian ethnicity, and development studies. He aims to enhance interactions between Malaysian firms and governments, strengthen ties among Malaysian and international businesses, and contribute to the development of Malaysia’s economic and trade relations with Europe and China. Recently, he joined the International Council of Small Businesses (ICSB) to support the growth and development of small enterprises in Malaysia. He also holds a one-year diploma in Buddhist Studies from the Buddhist and Pali University of Sri Lanka. Publicly, Lee has published in both English and Chinese. In 2018, he received the Best Thesis Award at the 11th TSC Thesis Awards (Oscar of the Management Academic World). He has been invited to international conferences in Malaysia, China, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Australia, and many of his papers are indexed in the Web of Science (WOS) and Scopus databases. As Malaysia moves into the tenth anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative, he co-authored, with colleagues from Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology (TARUMT) Malaysia, the work “Ten Years of Achievement: The Belt and Road Initiative’s Contribution to Malaysia’s Economic Growth” (2023). He also authored the English monograph “Chinese Family Businesses in Malaysia : Fostering Tacit Knowledge Innovation” (Routledge, 2025). His research areas remain focused on Chinese family firms, entrepreneurial spirit and innovation management, Buddhist studies, overseas Chinese studies, and China–Malaysia economic development. He continues to pursue scholarly endeavors alongside his ongoing roles at University of Malaya and researchers within the Department of Chinese Studies,  MCRC and Centre for Malaysian Chinese Studies (Huayan). He also holds a one-year Buddhist Studies diploma from the Sri Lanka Buddhist and Pali University.