He said the government decided to increase the amount after encouraging response to the scheme, which was previously increased from RM300 million to RM500 million.

“This is part of the entrepreneur and cooperatives development ministry’s PowerUp 10K effort to boost Malaysian businesses.

“We want more fund injections into the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) sector as well as Tekun Nasional which are among the important agencies under the ministry,” he told reporters after the Tekun Nasional 2026 appreciation ceremony here yesterday.

Sim said the increased funding was expected to help entrepreneurs expand their businesses and face the various global crises affecting the sector.

“With this RM1 billion, we will not only be able to help entrepreneurs face geopolitical and geoeconomic challenges but also help them to further expand their businesses,” he said.

The PowerUp 10K initiative aims to help MSMEs increase their business in the face of global uncertainty.

Sim previously said the government had allocated funding of up to RM15 billion to support the scaling up of about 10,000 MSME companies, in line with efforts to empower the people’s economy.

He said the government was expected to channel the entire fund of RM15 billion through agencies under the ministry in 2026 to benefit 400,000 entrepreneurs and cooperatives nationwide.

He said Tekun Nasional would also be empowered through the allocation to continue playing an important role in the agenda to empower the country’s MSMEs.

“From Jan 1 to April 30 this year, Tekun Nasional has channelled around RM360 million to almost 20,000 MSME entrepreneurs,” he said.