Nasimuddin's automobile business began with a shop lot in Taman Maluri selling 10 to 15 units of cars each month.
The Naza Group now has 15 business divisions covering industries such as cigarette distribution, credit and leasing, engineering, hotels, insurance, machine tools and parts, manufacturing, motorcycles, property, transport services, plantations and water craft.
Naza has now also become the biggest and most prominent importer of luxury high-end vehicles like Mercedes-Benz in Malaysia with endeavours such as Naza-Brabus.
He stated that he had already drawn his plan in turning around Proton if the Malaysian government gave the nod for him to buy a controlling stake of the company.
The practice of APs helped shift dominance of the car import industry from the ethnic Chinese to the Malays.
Prime Minister of Malaysia Tun Dr. Mahathir Mohamad described Nasimuddin as an example of the New Economic Policy's (NEP) success, Bernama reported.
Nasimuddin died of stage four lung cancer at a private hospital in Long Beach, California, US on 1 May 2008.
[8] The body was later taken to Batu 9 Muslim Cemetery in Hulu Langat, Selangor to be buried next to the grave of his beloved mother, Salbiah Abdul Majid.