Straits Trading Company
Encyclopedia
The Straits Trading Company Limited is a Singapore
-based corporation with operations in Singapore and Malaysia, as well as various localities in Asia and Australia.
Founded in 1887, the company was the result of a partnership for tin
smelting
between James Sword, a Scottish
businessman, and Herman Muhlinghaus, a German
entrepreneur; the Straits Trading Company was later incorporated in Singapore on 8 November 1887 with a hefty capital of S$150,000 during its days. The company eventually rose to become one of the largest tin smelters in the world, operating at tin rich deposits in the Kinta Valley and Klang Valley
of then British Malaya
(Peninsular Malaysia
).
By the late-20th century, the company began diversifying into hotel and property management, and financial investment; it also became a member of the Tecity Group. Mining and smelting operations that the Straits Trading Company was originally engaged in were eventually carried out by its 73%-owned subsidiary, the Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad, a public listed company on Bursa Malaysia
.
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
-based corporation with operations in Singapore and Malaysia, as well as various localities in Asia and Australia.
Founded in 1887, the company was the result of a partnership for tin
Tin
Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn and atomic number 50. It is a main group metal in group 14 of the periodic table. Tin shows chemical similarity to both neighboring group 14 elements, germanium and lead and has two possible oxidation states, +2 and the slightly more stable +4...
smelting
Smelting
Smelting is a form of extractive metallurgy; its main use is to produce a metal from its ore. This includes iron extraction from iron ore, and copper extraction and other base metals from their ores...
between James Sword, a Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
businessman, and Herman Muhlinghaus, a German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
entrepreneur; the Straits Trading Company was later incorporated in Singapore on 8 November 1887 with a hefty capital of S$150,000 during its days. The company eventually rose to become one of the largest tin smelters in the world, operating at tin rich deposits in the Kinta Valley and Klang Valley
Klang Valley
Klang Valley is an area in Malaysia comprising Kuala Lumpur and its suburbs, and adjoining cities and towns in the state of Selangor. An alternative reference to this would be Kuala Lumpur Metropolitan Area or Greater Kuala Lumpur. It is geographically delineated by Titiwangsa Mountains to the...
of then British Malaya
British Malaya
British Malaya loosely described a set of states on the Malay Peninsula and the Island of Singapore that were brought under British control between the 18th and the 20th centuries...
(Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia
Peninsular Malaysia , also known as West Malaysia , is the part of Malaysia which lies on the Malay Peninsula. Its area is . It shares a land border with Thailand in the north. To the south is the island of Singapore. Across the Strait of Malacca to the west lies the island of Sumatra...
).
By the late-20th century, the company began diversifying into hotel and property management, and financial investment; it also became a member of the Tecity Group. Mining and smelting operations that the Straits Trading Company was originally engaged in were eventually carried out by its 73%-owned subsidiary, the Malaysia Smelting Corporation Berhad, a public listed company on Bursa Malaysia
Bursa Malaysia
Bursa Malaysia is an exchange holding company approved under Section 15 of the Capital Markets and Services Act 2007. It operates a fully integrated exchange, offering the complete range of exchange-related services including trading, clearing, settlement and depository services.- History :Bursa...
.