Friday 29 Mar 2024
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KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 27): June 23, 2016 – that date has forever been etched in the annals of history as the day Britain went to the polls to decide if it was leaving the EU or staying with the grouping.

In Kuala Lumpur, it was also the day when Bank Negara Malaysia issued a statement to stress it remained “vigilant” to potential spillover effects of the UK’s referendum. The move caught many by surprise as it doesn't usually issue such statements prior to an event or market development.

The note, issued by the central bank’s Financial Markets Committee – which was set up just a month earlier and comprises Bank Negara officials and industry players – also announced that trading hours would be extended to 6pm a day after the Brexit vote to facilitate market transactions.

Subsequently, the FMC, as the committee is increasingly known as, introduced a new USD/RM reference rate, which replaced the old USD/RM fixed rate on July 18.

And more FMC initiatives are in the pipeline, aimed at providing stability and bolstering the country’s wholesale financial markets, wrote The Edge Malaysia's managing editor Anna Taing and associate editor Joyce Goh in the publication's cover story ‘FMC gets down to business’ for the week of Aug 29 – Sept 4.

Among the work-in-progress initiatives involve the retail bond market – essentially how to develop it – and improving business efficiency when it comes to the implementation of foreign exchange administration rules, the weekly wrote, quoting Bank Negara assistant governor Adnan Zaylani, who heads the FMC.

The setting up of the high-powered FMC is seen as timely, when financial markets across the globe are facing significant volatility – which is increasingly seen as “the new normal”.

Besides formulating measures to provide stability, it also aims to ensure the Malaysian market is resilient in times of uncertainty and buffered against external shocks.

Do note that Malaysia’s financial markets have grown considerably over the last 10 years and their annual turnover last year already hit RM28 trillion.

In the first FMC media interview since its inception, five members of the committee spoke to The Edge Malaysia on how they want to make the market more vibrant, transparent and on par with international practices.

Besides Adnan, the other four are: Datuk Lee Kok Kwan, who is also the president of the Financial Markets Association of Malaysia; Alvin Kong the managing director, head of markets, HSBC Malaysia; Mohamad Haji Derwish, the general manager of Telekom Malaysia Bhd; and Emilee Yew, the chief investment officer of AIA Bhd.

Pick up a copy of The Edge Malaysia today to check out what are in the works, what the committee sees as necessary to further strengthen Malaysia’s financial markets, and more importantly, how they will impact market players.

P/S: Don't forget — The Edge Malaysia can also be downloaded from Apple's AppStore and Androids' Google Play.

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P/S: The Edge is also available on Apple's AppStore and Androids' Google Play.

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