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Treasurer & Financial Controller

Finance

Direct financial activities, such as planning, procurement, and investments for all or part of an organization.

FinanceAccounting

Picture the job

Where you'd usually workA finance or banking office

  • Mostly indoors
  • Sitting for most of the day
  • Dealing with customers or the public
  • Regular working hours

An illustration of a typical workplace, not a photo. The work-style notes come from US O*NET data, so read them as a guide.

In Malaysia

Malaysian job ads separate treasury (cash, FX, borrowing) from financial control (reporting, audit, tax); in smaller firms one person does both. Most controllers are professionally qualified accountants (ACCA, CIMA, CPA, MICPA), and Kuala Lumpur shared-service centres hire many finance staff.

How people get into it here
SPM → foundation/STPM/matriculation or diploma → Bachelor's in accounting or finance (or ACCA/CIMA/MICPA route) → finance or treasury executive → finance manager → financial controller after about 12 years; many register with MIA as Chartered Accountants.
Demand
'Finance Managers' have appeared on all eight MyCOL editions since 2015 and are on MyCOL 2024/2025. TalentCorp MyCOL 2024/2025 brochure

Sources:randstad.com.mytalentcorp.com.my

Pay in Malaysia

Starting in the role

RM4,000 – RM7,000

per month

Experienced

RM18,000 – RM25,000

per month

From a published Malaysian salary guide. Actual offers vary by employer, city and experience.

Randstad Malaysia 2025 Salary Guide · Dec 2024

How far is this from you?

Roughly how much preparation this job usually takes. In Malaysia your UPU route and the programme's syarat still decide entry, so treat this as a guide, not a gate.

  1. 1

    Entry straight after SPM

  2. 2

    SPM + sijil / short TVET course

  3. 3

    Diploma / TVET (sijil–diploma)

  4. Typical entry

    Degree (ijazah sarjana muda)

  5. 5

    Postgrad (sarjana / PhD) or professional route

Typical educationBachelor's degree

Quick answers

How do you become a Treasurer & Financial Controller in Malaysia?

SPM → foundation/STPM/matriculation or diploma → Bachelor's in accounting or finance (or ACCA/CIMA/MICPA route) → finance or treasury executive → finance manager → financial controller after about 12 years; many register with MIA as Chartered Accountants. Optional registration with Malaysian Institute of Accountants (MIA) — needed to use the title 'Chartered Accountant'; not legally required for controller/treasury jobs is available.

What should I study to become a Treasurer & Financial Controller?

Related fields of study: Finance and Accounting. SPM subjects that help most: Principles of Accounting, Economics, English and Business.

How much does a Treasurer & Financial Controller earn in Malaysia?

Published figures put starting pay at RM4,000 – RM7,000 a month, and RM18,000 – RM25,000 with experience (source: Randstad Malaysia 2025 Salary Guide, Dec 2024).

What you'd do all day

The tasks that matter most in this job, most important first.

  1. 1Evaluate needs for procurement of funds and investment of surpluses and make appropriate recommendations.
  2. 2Delegate authority for the receipt, disbursement, banking, protection, and custody of funds, securities, and financial instruments.
  3. 3Prepare and file annual tax returns or prepare financial information so that outside accountants can complete tax returns.
  4. 4Develop and maintain relationships with banking, insurance, and external accounting personnel to facilitate financial activities.
  5. 5Monitor financial activities and details, such as cash flow and reserve levels, to ensure that all legal and regulatory requirements are met.
  6. 6Supervise employees performing financial reporting, accounting, billing, collections, payroll, and budgeting duties.
  7. 7Receive, record, and authorize requests for disbursements in accordance with company policies and procedures.
  8. 8Develop internal control policies, guidelines, and procedures for activities, such as budget administration, cash and credit management, and accounting.
  9. 9Coordinate and direct the financial planning, budgeting, procurement, or investment activities of all or part of an organization.
  10. 10Receive cash and checks and make deposits.
  11. 11Prepare or direct preparation of financial statements, business activity reports, financial position forecasts, annual budgets, or reports required by regulatory agencies.
  12. 12Perform tax planning work.
  13. 13Monitor and evaluate the performance of accounting and other financial staff, recommending and implementing personnel actions, such as promotions and dismissals.
  14. 14Analyze the financial details of past, present, and expected operations to identify development opportunities and areas where improvement is needed.
  15. 15Conduct or coordinate audits of company accounts and financial transactions to ensure compliance with state and federal requirements and statutes.
  16. 16Maintain current knowledge of organizational policies and procedures, federal and state policies and directives, and current accounting standards.
  17. 17Advise management on short-term and long-term financial objectives, policies, and actions.
  18. 18Compute, withhold, and account for all payroll deductions.
  19. 19Provide direction and assistance to other organizational units regarding accounting and budgeting policies and procedures and efficient control and utilization of financial resources.
  20. 20Handle all aspects of employee insurance, benefits, and casualty programs, including monitoring changes in health insurance regulations and creating budgets for benefits and worker's compensation.
  21. 21Lead staff training and development in budgeting and financial management areas.
  22. 22Determine depreciation rates to apply to capitalized items and advise management on actions regarding the purchase, lease, or disposal of such items.

Also known as

What this job is called on JobStreet, LinkedIn and in job ads. Search these too.

  • Financier
  • Treasurer
  • Controller
  • Comptroller
  • Trust Officer
  • City Treasurer
  • City Controller
  • Cost Controller
  • City Comptroller
  • County Treasurer

Subjects that matter here

The SPM subjects worth your effort for this career, with the reason for each.

Principles of AccountingDraws directly on Economics and Accounting — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
EconomicsDraws directly on Economics and Accounting — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
EnglishDraws directly on English Language — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
BusinessDraws directly on Administration and Management — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).
Additional MathematicsDraws directly on Mathematics — a top knowledge area for this role (O*NET).

What you'd need to know

The subject areas this job leans on most, and the SPM subjects that build them.

  • Economics and Accounting92%

    Principles of AccountingEconomics

  • English Language84%

    English

  • Administration and Management81%

    BusinessEconomics

  • Mathematics78%

    Additional MathematicsMathematics

  • Personnel and Human Resources62%

    Business

  • Customer and Personal Service57%

Tools you'd use

Software and equipment that show up in this job, worth learning early.

Where to learn these, free

Scholarships & funding

What the work feels like

Day-to-day working conditions, so you can tell whether the job suits how you like to work.

  • Face-to-face discussionsEvery day
  • Contact with other peopleContact most of the time
  • Dealing with customers or the publicVery high
  • Leading or coordinating othersHigh
  • Indoors, air-conditionedEvery day
  • Outdoors, in all weatherAlmost never
  • Noisy environmentRarely
  • Time spent sittingAlmost all the time

AI and demand for this job

A few real, dated data points, not a single score. AI making some tasks faster usually means a job changes, not that it disappears.

16%

Share of everyday tasks today's AI can already help with (2023)

This estimate is from 2023, already out of date, since AI moves fast. Treat it as a rough, aging starting point, not the current picture.

Growing role in the US

US Bureau of Labor Statistics data, not Malaysian. Shown because it's the only forward-looking demand estimate we have for this job.

What beginner adverts asked for

We read 8 internship and fresh-graduate adverts in related fields (August 2026). A small sample from one job site, not every vacancy.

8 of 8 were internships

Allowance or pay, when stated

RM1,075 – RM1,465

4 of 8 adverts printed an amount: usually between RM1,075 and RM1,465 a month. Many print none.

Minimum CGPA asked

3.00 to 3.50

Stated in 2 adverts. Others did not state one.

SPM results asked

up to 5 As

1 advert asked for A grades at SPM, so some doors are partly decided before university.

Languages named

Mandarin

An empty line means the adverts did not say, not that employers have no requirement. Check each employer's own advert before you plan around it.

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About this information

This describes what the job involves. Pay, demand and entry routes differ in Malaysia, so check the Pathways and Programmes pages for local requirements.

O*NET occupation: Treasurers and Controllers

Source: Randstad Malaysia 2025 Salary Guide · as of Dec 2024

Check the salary figures yourself:Randstad Malaysia 2025 Salary Guide

Job responsibilities, knowledge areas and work context from O*NET 30.3, US Department of Labor, used under CC BY 4.0. onetcenter.org