"Australian corporates that have Asian interest will find a network and reach that is quite unique at CIMB," Mr Nazir said.
"CIMB is an ASEAN bank. ASEAN is Australia's direct neighbour and, because of that, Australia will be core to CIMB's investment banking operations.
"We have 'multi-local' platforms across ASEAN and to an extent, APAC as a whole. These can deliver deals, relationships and financial support. Our new Australian franchise will certainly not be an appendage on the far reaches of a global empire."
Mr Nazir, a veteran dealmaker who has been expanding the group's presence in Southeast Asia by acquisitions since 2006, has sold the RBS deal as a way to build the regional investment banking business faster and cheaper than by growing organically.
He said expanding its investment banking reach beyond ASEAN was a priority and "the Australian part of this deal was very desirable to us".
After solidifying the deal with RBS last month, he expects CIMB to open up shop in Australia in three to four months, which he described as relatively quick but not easy as RBS "had other options".
Awaiting CIMB are some of the toughest conditions in years as companies shy away from mergers and acquisitions, and the weak equity market weighs on initial public offerings and stockmarket volumes.
Indeed, rival bankers at established investment banks say CIMB faces a battle to build relationships and win deals in the "overbanked" market when activity is muted and given the few cross-border deals between Malaysia and Australia.
Albeit via an acquisition, CIMB's entrance comes at a starkly different time in the cycle from when Nomura, Moelis and Barclays Capital opened up and grew in Australia after the global meltdown, when activity was buoyant relative to other parts of the world.
Macquarie Group, one of the leading investment banks in Australia and the Asia-Pacific, announced last week that it had slashed 1300 jobs in the past 12 months, including hundreds locally, in its toughest year since the global financial crisis.
Although Mr Nazir said the firm was still working on the final headcount for CIMB in Australia and the mix of RBS and CIMB staff, he backed RBS's performance and position in the market.
At the end of the first quarter, RBS was 11th in stockbroking and 13th for completed M&A deals involving Australian corporations, according to Thomson Reuters.
RBS Australia, formerly ABN AMRO, has performed better in equity capital markets, ranking fourth in the quarter.
CIMB, which also has a retail banking operation, sits outside the top 10 for Asia ex-Japan in mergers and acquisitions, and equity capital markets.
But Mr Nazir said the bank was not ready for relationship building or to give future market share targets.
Retaining key staff is crucial for investment banks and would be necessary for CIMB after a slew of senior analysts and bankers turned down its offer, including head of equity capital markets Jason Valmadre.
"There's the brand issue, there's the pay cut and then there's the RBS Morgans side of it," a former RBS banker said about why some staff had not stayed with CIMB.
Bankers who accepted in the first round of offers will receive retention payments if they stay at CIMB for 18 months and the few job openings at rival banks may lessen the turnover.
CIMB has just sent out its second round of offers to junior RBS staff and it is understood most have accepted.
RBS, which employed about 600 staff in Australia, is retaining a slimmed-down presence consisting of fixed income and foreign exchange.
But Mr Nazir said CIMB had secured 83 per cent of the RBS Australia senior bankers it wanted, within expectations, and confirmed CIMB had just sent out the second batch of offers.
Overall, 87 per cent of RBS's 94 senior bankers across the region accepted CIMB's offer.
"We did not expect to get everyone, and the terms we offered to each individual also reflected that," Mr Nazir said.
"The terms include incentives for staff to stay on with us and give the new franchise a good run.
"But, I don't believe in making it too difficult for people to leave us because we just don't want to put on staff who are not committed to the franchise in front of clients."
Mr Nazir said also there "isn't a clear timeline as yet" for negotiations to buy RBS's half stake in broker RBS Morgans, but he had met Morgans' management.
"We are keen to add RBS Morgans to our franchise because I think we would get along very well with the Morgans management team who I have met," he said.
CIMB has more than 40,000 staff and expects 350 to 400 RBS Asia-Pacific staff to join the group.
The Australian business would be run by veteran RBS rainmaker Nick Rowe, who Mr Nazir said he did not "pretend to know well".
Mr Rowe was appointed "based on consensus among senior RBS leaders coming across to us".
Mr Nazir said he planned to retain staff by demonstrating CIMB's "enabling" environment and how synergies with the firm would benefit deal-flow.
CIMB has a performance-based remuneration structure and Mr Nazir said the historical salary differential between regional and global investment banking firms had "shrunk quite dramatically".
"We do not conform to that outdated stereotype of being a feudalistic Asian company, and we have a 'carefrontational' culture which highlights the need for debate and disagreements," he said.
While CIMB's plans were still being worked out, Mr Nazir said the addition of RBS's platform gave it "powerful capabilities", including market-leading capabilities across Australia, China and India, a vast research offering, greater execution and experienced staff.
CIMB has a market value of about $US18 billion ($117.4bn) and has a target of expanding its consumer banking business from about 40 per cent of profits to 60 per cent by 2015.
Its previous business in Australia has been through a partnership with broker BBY to facilitate access to the Australian stockmarket for its clients.