This article first appeared in The Edge Malaysia Weekly on December 29, 2025 - January 4, 2026

Discord between former Sapura Resources Bhd (KL:SAPRES) managing director Datuk Shahriman Shamsuddin and his elder brother, non-executive director Tan Sri Shahril Shamsuddin, first surfaced in August 2024, when the group responded to a local news report highlighting a potential conflict of interest.

The report noted that Shahriman, through his personal venture Explorer Group Sdn Bhd, was competing with Sapura Resources’ wholly-owned aviation units — Sapura Aero Sdn Bhd and DNest Aviation Sdn Bhd.

In response, Sapura Resources’ board stated that Shahriman had “been instructed to abstain from managing the group’s aviation business”. On Sept 11, 2024, Shahriman was placed on a one-month leave of absence, which was later extended, and given show-cause letters. He resigned on Oct 29, 2024.

In Shahriman’s defence, Sapura Resources, still reeling from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, had been seeking to exit its aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul business, even signing an agreement with Abu Dhabi-based RoyalJet LLC, which ultimately fell through. This raised the question: If the group was planning to divest, could Shahriman’s involvement be considered a conflict of interest?

Amid the uncertainty, Shahriman filed a High Court petition on Sept 23, 2024, seeking to wind up Sapura Holdings Sdn Bhd, the parent company with a 51.47% stake in Sapura Resources and other assets.

Sapura Holdings has three shareholders: Shahriman and Shahril, who is group CEO of Sapura Holdings, each with 40.5%; their private investment vehicle Brothers Capital Sdn Bhd (15%); and businessman Datuk Rameli Musa (4%).

Shahriman argued that Sapura Holdings was a family company and merited a winding up due to a breakdown in trust between the brothers. Shahril disagreed, insisting that the presence of Rameli’s 4% stake prevented the company from meeting the legal definition of a family business.

With Rameli allegedly siding with Shahril, Shahriman found himself at a disadvantage.

The feud intensified when their 94-year-old father, Tan Sri Shamsuddin Abdul Kadir, publicly sided with Shahriman, emphasising that he had founded Sapura Holdings with the intention of keeping it a family-run company.

To put things in perspective, the Sapura Holdings feud was a sideshow to a larger battle over Project Apex, the development of Permata Sapura, a 52-storey skyscraper near Kuala Lumpur’s Petronas Twin Towers. Shahriman advocated selling the property to avoid overstretching Sapura Resources, while Shahril preferred a cash call, requiring shareholders to inject additional funds.

What began as a disagreement over a single project snowballed into allegations of conflict of interest, board tensions and a courtroom showdown. After months of legal wrangling, the brothers finally reached a settlement, bringing an end to one of corporate Malaysia’s most closely watched family feuds.

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