A summitter of Gokyo Ri

Assalamualaikum and a very good afternoon I bid to Governor, DG, AGs, Directors, Deputy Directors, and all guests who are present today. 

I’m not a descriptive person. I will not describe to you how amazing the views were from beginning to end of the journey. I believe the video presentation and the photo exhibition have done a fantastic job in illustrating that. What I would like to share with you are my personal reflections on the journey, something that could not be captured visually, but could be felt and only seen in hindsight. 

If I were to share two eye-openers from this adventure, they will certainly be the new comfort zone I have found & a different interpretation of success I have been enlightened with. 

They say “Growth happens outside of your comfort zone”. And that was exactly the reason on my mind when I signed myself up for this expedition. I wanted to go out of my safe cocoon and challenge myself to grow. I wanted to recognise my boundaries and push myself to overcome them. But little did I know, I was actually jumping out of my comfort zone, to a different kind of comfort zone. 

Why do I say that? 

Despite the tremendous challenges we have to face all the way through, I feel truly blessed to be surrounded by people who have made me feel at home. 

It was a journey where friendship is age, race, and status blind. There is no question about how high or how low you are on the corporate ladder because underneath us all, we are flawed individuals who are striving to be better. 

It was a journey where people have endlessly encouraged and cheered for each other even though they themselves were gasping and struggling to make it to the finish line. 

It was a journey where you see living proofs that with hard work and determination, it is possible to have a career, a family and still keep pursuing interests you have passion for. 

It was a journey where the only comparison ever made upon you is one against your previous self, not against a benchmark set by others. And in those elements, I found my comfort zone. 

This trip has also opened my eyes to another definition of success. For most of us, success is about transcending our limits and achieving our dreams. While those are absolutely true, little did we realise that there is another level of accomplishment that we could, and perhaps should strive for. And that is, by helping and empowering others to also grow beyond their limits. 

This different interpretation of success is demonstrated by none other than our team leader, Apau. I kept wondering, why would a man 

1. Spend thousands of Ringgit to climb the same peak for 3 times 
2. Take the pain to train us, whom level of fitness are so far behind 
3. Spend so much time to organise for the trip, get the paperwork and approval ready when he could have climbed a different peak on his own, hassle free. 

I found my answer at the summit of Gokyo. 

As I was getting closer to the peak, I told myself that the first thing I wanted to do was to find Apau and thank him for making this possible. That’s all. 

Instead, standing in front of him, I found myself crying and lost for words for a moment. I hugged him eventually and said “Thank you. 
Thank you Apau, for everything”, to which he replied “it felt good, right?” 

You see, Apau had “been there & done that”. He knew how mountains could change people and how nature has opened minds and thoughts in ways no self-help books could. He believed that and wanted to share that valuable learning experience with the rest of us. 

Success could be scoring your personal goals or a long list of personal accolades. To Apau, success is helping others to get there. It’s about making small but permanent impact in other people’s lives. It doesn't matter if he has climbed the mountains for the umpteenth times, but if he could make the journey possible for other people to bring changes within themselves, that is already a success. To me, this is deeply profound. It is a very meaningful compass to navigate our lives with for greater purpose that yields greater good. 

All in all, the expedition has been amazing and has offered us a holistic learning experience. I have learned useful knowledge on health and fitness like what to eat and not to eat on training days and experienced the good physiological changes that happen in between. At the same time, I also gained tremendous motivation to keep on pushing forward even when my legs are quitting on me because I know the pain is worthwhile. 

In fact, I believe the experiences we had have made all of us stronger physically, mentally and emotionally. 
As I reflect upon my one year anniversary with Bank Negara, I find myself lucky to be surrounded by highly motivated yet humble colleagues with diverse backgrounds. The learning opportunity that this organisation has to offer (indoor or outdoor) is something not to be taken for granted. 

When a British mountaineer named George Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mt. Everest, his answer was “because it’s there”. I used to think that sounds cliche and a bit too simplistic to say, especially for someone who was about to conquer the impossible and leave a legacy behind. 

Now that I’ve been to the Himalayas, I’m thinking maybe George Mallory was right after all. The trekking experience there is so incredible that no words could do justice. 

So, I’ve decided. If someone asks why I would put myself under Apau’s training regime and endure hundred kilometres of trekking, my answer would be “because it’s worth it”. 

And I hope people wouldn’t find that answer cliche and simplistic too, but rather will be inspired to experience what could be a life-changing journey of a lifetime. 

Thank you. 

- Atikah Abdul Aziz -
Central Banker

‘Crises are bound to happen again and again'

Governor of Malaysia's central bank Zeti Akhtar Aziz shares her insights from the front line of the battle against regional and global financial crisis, in an exclusive interview with the Nation Group's Veenarat Laohapakakul.

Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz is the first female central bank governor in Asia. She has been with Malaysia's central bank since 1985, becoming interim governor during the financial crisis in 1998 and governor in 2000. She has been credited with developing the financial sector and steering Malaysia onto a stable economic path.

A lot has been said about the Asean Economic Community, but how will integration in next year actually impact our 10 economies?

I am a strong advocate for this integration process because I think our approach is very different to the way Europe has approached economic and financial integration, though we would like to achieve the same objectives of greater prosperity for all the countries. We come from a region of highly diverse countries and so we can leverage on our complementary strengths. Going forward we really need to intensify our interconnectivities so that there's more trade. Right now, [only] 25 per cent of our total trade is within Southeast Asia, so we need to intensify this. We need to recycle our savings so they are invested within our region. We should put in place the infrastructure to enable this to happen.

This should be win-win. No countries should be marginalised as a result of this process. It cannot be a winner-takes-all approach.

The BRICS countries recently formed a development bank. Do you think that's a good
idea?

To some extent I think it's an expression of frustration that emerging economies do not have
a voice in existing international organisations like the IMF and World Bank. There are
tremendous challenges in restructuring the quota system to get greater representation. We
are becoming more dominant. The world becomes more multipolar. There's increasing
significance of emerging markets in contributing to global growth, so we want to have a
greater choice and be part of the international decision-making process. When that is not
happening, this is what happens. International organisations, like the World Bank and IMF,
should leverage on these organisations and work collaboratively rather than looking at it as a
threat.

Bankers cause financial crisis. Do you agree?

Well, not necessarily. In some cases, it was because part of a financial system, especially in
the US, was not actually regulated - investment banking, and so on. The environment has
also changed significantly that the crisis starts in the financial market and it can be
addressed at that point in time to manage the stresses and dysfunctionalities that occurred
in the financial market because from the financial market it translates into massive losses to
the financial institutions, then you have financial stress and economic crisis that follows.
I don't think you can put the blame on anyone in particular because equally important is the
regulator that provides the oversight. We should see the oncoming nature of the
developments that are taking place. I believe in intervention. We have a very interventionist
supervisory oversight. The central bank of Malaysia doesn't believe in the light touch
approach because sometimes the market gets over exuberance and this need to be
contained. It's very difficult to take away the punch bowl when the party is going, but it's the
role of the regulator to tamper these kinds of trends. It's not very popular but the price for it
later on is much, much higher. It's very damaging and can be very devastating to a country.

What do you think the relationship between the central bank and its government
should be?

That is always a challenging relationship. It has to be a continuous relationship of
engagement. The central bank wants to have its independence and that is very important. It
is in the interest of the government to have an independent central bank because the central
bank will be at the forefront of any crises and crisis is all about managing confidence. When
you lose confidence, it can be very highly destabilising, far more destabilising than the factor
that triggers the crisis. So having an independent central bank that had a high degree of
credibility is very important.

What is important is the central bank had to keep the government informed of what it is
doing because most governments do not like surprises and neither do markets. This
relationship has to be managed well. Differences exist because there's lack of awareness
and understanding of the issues. The issues going forward have become far more complex.
The central bank can never on its own manage a financial crisis, but has to manage it
collectively, not only with Finance Ministry but with other ministries and agencies.

Does the Malaysian government ever tell you what or what not to do?

No. There's a degree of respect. There are differences in views on how certain matters are to be addressed, but these differences are resolved bilaterally, not done over the media or in the market. This is the constructive way to do it.

Was the financial crisis back in 1998 the most difficult time for you as a central banker?

Reflecting now, the most challenging time for me was probably the financial crisis. The reason is that in such an environment, if the wrong decision was made or there was inaction, the cost of it would be so high and would be high for all people living in the country. The cost would be devastating. The stakes are very high.
The second reason why it was so challenging is that the central bank, which is at the forefront of any financial crises, you cannot resolve the crisis on your own. You have to rely on others that have very important roles and therefore it is the collective effort, but any form of collaboration when there's very diverse views and interests, it's highly challenging. When the crisis reached its peak, it was a moment in history where it could go one way or the other. That was the most challenging time that I've experienced.

Is there any chance we will ever see a financial crisis like 1997-1998's again?

Well, that is unpredictable. Recently I gave a paper on "Managing financial crisis in an interconnected world" and the subheading was "Anticipating the next mega tidal wave". This is because crises are bound to happen again and again. Over the recent 30 years, there've been more than a hundred crises around the world. Some have greater spillover effects than others. Therefore, what is important is we have the capability in managing such crisis. If we are best able to manage such crisis, we can minimise its impact on us, whether it's generated within our own financial system, or it's a spillover effect from another part of the world.
This capability has to be in-built. Most central banks have business continuity teams that can manage disruptions but we also need a crisis management team that can coordinate any eventualities of a crisis. I do believe that's the way forward. I do not think we can prevent crisis from happening.


This exclusive interview was aired on Nation TV's "Mong Rao Mong Lok" programme on 8 August 2014 at 6.30pm, (Digital TV Channel 22 or Satellite TV Channel 32).

Bank Negara Malaysia will not review repayment period

Bank Negara Malaysia will not review repayment period

By LIZ LEE
lizlee@thestar.com.my

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia will not review its 10-year repayment period for personal loans as suggested by certain quarters.

Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz was responding to appeals by Congress of Unions of Employees in the Public and Civil Services (Cuepacs) and the National Cooperative Organisation of Malaysia’s (Angkasa) to consider reviewing Bank Negara’s 10-year repayment period.

“In the world, 10 years for a personal loan (to be repaid) is the highest. It is usually about six years in other countries,” Zeti said on sidelines of the 5th Annual Global Policy Forum by the Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI).

Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak graced the closing ceremony of the forum.

“When a person borrows to either pay for a television or a wedding, that is squandered within a few days,” she said, “(If the repayment period is longer) he or she will then have the misery of owning that loan for 15, 20 or 25 years for what they spent in a few days.”

Zeti pointed out that personal loans are different from housing loans, where applicants eventually own an asset after repaying the loan.

Both Cuepacs and Angkasa opined that the repayment cap should be extended to 15 years.

On higher inflation as a result from higher fuel costs, Zeti said there was no such scenario currently.

“We do not see that happening because the global economy is still having a very modest growth and certainly from the demand side, it is not going to precipitate higher prices,” she said, adding that any Government that tried to contain price increases through subsidies would experience a financial burden that is not sustainable.
“However, if there is a disruption in supply due to events that is beyond anyone’s control, then of course it could cause prices to go up throughout the world,” she said.

The forum ended with AFI declaring the Sasana Accord to help people in developing countries to have some form of financial services.

New rules won't hurt consumer financing segment

The article was first published on Business Times.

'New rules won't hurt consumer financing segment'

Muhammed Ahmad Hamdan
2013/07/10

BANK Islam Malaysia Bhd does not see the new regulation on household debts introduced by Bank Negara Malaysia recently as having a negative impact on its consumer financing segment.

Business development director Khairul Kamarudin said Bank Islam is, in fact, optimistic of achieving around a 20 per cent growth in its consumer financing segment this year.

"We welcome the new regulation by Bank Negara. We don't see it affecting our consumer financing segment as we have been practising similar guidelines since two years ago," Khairul said after launching Bank Islam's new Visa platinum credit card here yesterday.

Bank Negara last Friday announced that commercial banks must now set 10 years as maximum tenure for personal loan financing and 35 years for property loans.

"Ninety five per cent of our property loan borrowers has tenures of below 35 years.

"Our personal loan segment only offers a maximum tenure of 15 years, compared to other banks that offer personal loan tenures of more than 20 years," Khairul said.

Housing loan segment accounts for 50 per cent of Bank Islam's consumer financing portfolio, while personal loan is 30 per cent.

"We believe that Bank Islam has strong product distribution channels which will support the growth of our consumer financing segment," he added.

The new rules set by BNM were to curb excessive household debts and to reinforce responsible lending practices by key credit providers.

This is in light of the country's increasing household debts - averaging at an annual rate of 12 per cent over the last five years.

Khairul said Bank Islam expects to secure between 25,000 and 30,000 new subscribers for its new Visa platinum credit card by year-end.

"The target is relatively low as it is based on the industry's performance. Nevertheless, we will run various campaigns and initiatives to attract new subscribers for the Visa platinum credit card, including those who have already subscribed from other banks."

Currently, Bank Islam has a total of 138,000 active credit card members, including 2,000 Mastercard platinum credit card holders.

Its consumer card segment, which comprises 1.6 million cards, constitutes about five per cent of the bank's total consumer financing portfolio.

Financial Services Act 2013 and Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 Come Into Force

Financial Services Act 2013 and Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 Come Into Force

04 July 2013 06:00 PM
by Jabatan Komunikasi Strategik
 

The regulatory and supervisory framework of Malaysia enters a new stage of its development as the Financial Services Act 2013 (FSA) and Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 (IFSA) come into force on 30 June 2013.

The FSA and IFSA is the culmination of efforts to modernise the laws that govern the conduct and supervision of financial institutions in Malaysia to ensure that these laws continue to be relevant and effective to maintain financial stability, support inclusive growth in the financial system and the economy, as well as to provide adequate protection for consumers.  The laws also provide Bank Negara Malaysia with the necessary regulatory and supervisory oversight powers to fulfil its broad mandate within a more complex and interconnected environment, given the regional and international nature of financial developments. This includes an increased focus on preemptive measures to address issues of concern within financial institutions that may affect the interests of depositors and policyholders, and the effective and efficient functioning of financial intermediation.

It is important that Malaysia's regulatory and supervisory system is adequately equipped to respond effectively to new and emerging risks so that confidence in the financial system is preserved and that the critical financial intermediation activities which are vital to the economy are not disrupted. The FSA and IFSA amalgamate several separate laws to govern the financial sector under a single legislative framework for the conventional and Islamic financial sectors respectively, namely, the Banking and Financial Institutions Act 1989 (BAFIA), Islamic Banking Act 1983, Insurance Act 1996 (IA), Takaful Act 1984, Payment Systems Act 2003 and Exchange Control Act 1953 which are repealed on the same date.
Key features of the new legislation include:

• Greater clarity and transparency in the implementation and administration of the law. This includes clearly defined regulatory objectives and accountability of Bank Negara Malaysia in pursuing its principal object to safeguard financial stability, transparent triggers for the exercise of Bank Negara Malaysia's powers and functions under the law, and transparent assessment criteria for authorizing institutions to carry on regulated financial business, and for shareholder suitability;

• A clear focus on Shariah compliance and governance in the Islamic financial sector. In particular, the IFSA provides a comprehensive legal framework that is fully consistent with Shariah in all aspects of regulation and supervision, from licensing to the winding-up of an institution;

• Provisions for differentiated regulatory requirements that reflect the nature of financial intermediation activities and their risks to the overall financial system;

• Provisions to regulate financial holding companies and non-regulated entities to take account of systemic risks that can emerge from the interaction between regulated and unregulated institutions, activities and markets. The Minister of Finance may subject an institution that engages in financial intermediation activities to ongoing regulation and supervision by Bank Negara Malaysia if it poses or is likely to pose a risk to overall financial stability;

• Strengthened business conduct and consumer protection requirements to promote consumer confidence in the use of financial services and products;

• Strengthened provisions for effective and early enforcement and supervisory intervention

The new laws will place Malaysia's financial sector, encompassing the banking system, the insurance/takaful sector, the financial markets and payment systems and other financial intermediaries, on a platform for advancing forward as a sound, responsible and progressive financial system. This is especially important to enable the financial system to meet the new demands for financing associated with Malaysia's economic transformation programme both during and beyond the next decade, the changing demographics of our population, and the increasing integration of the Malaysian economy with the region and the world.

Copies of the FSA and IFSA are available on Bank Negara Malaysia's website. Any query relating to the provisions of FSA and IFSA may be directed to FSAandIFSA@bnm.gov.my.

Bank Negara Malaysia
1 July 2013

Going Green this Aidilfitri!

Kepada kaum keluarga dan sahabat handai, tiada lagi want kertas baru untuk Aidilfitri kali ini. Semua not adalah yang dikitar semula.

Mari kita sama-sama menjayakan kempen "Going Green"!

Di bawah ini adalah pengumuman daripada Bank Negara Malaysia untuk bacaan semua :)


"Going Green" dengan Wang Kertas Yang Sesuai untuk Edaran Semula Semasa Hari Raya Aidilfitri

Dalam usaha menyokong agenda nasional "Going Green", Bank Negara Malaysia akan mengedar semula wang kertas denominasi RM1 dan RM5 yang sesuai untuk Hari Raya Aidilfitri yang akan datang. Inisiatif ini merupakan usaha yang membabitkan Kementerian Tenaga, Teknologi Hijau dan Air (KeTTHA), Persatuan Bank-bank dalam Malaysia (ABM), Malaysian Environmental NGOs (MENGO) dan Yayasan Anak Warisan Alam (YAWA) untuk menggalakkan kelestarian sumber negara dan pemuliharaan alam sekitar.

Substrat polimer diperkenalkan pada tahun 2004 untuk RM5 bagi meningkatkan ketahanan wang kertas dan mengurangkan kos dan permintaan yang tinggi terhadap sumber yang digunakan dalam pengeluaran mata wang. Penggunaan substrat polimer diperluas untuk merangkumi RM1 pada tahun 2012 apabila wang kertas polimer RM5 mencapai rekod penggunaan yang positif. Wang kertas polimer dapat bertahan 2 hingga 3 kali lebih lama berbanding dengan wang kertas biasa. Dicetak menggunakan substrat yang sangat tahan lama, wang kertas RM1 dan RM5 dapat kekal dalam edaran lebih lama dan lebih berupaya untuk mengekalkan kualiti keselamatan dan estetika sepanjang hayat penggunaannya. Memandangkan hanya wang kertas yang berkualiti tinggi akan diedar semula, orang ramai adalah digalakkan untuk menggunakan wang kertas yang sesuai ini sebagai "duit raya".

Setiap tahun Bank Negara Malaysia mengeluarkan lebih kurang 750 juta keping wang kertas RM1 dan RM5 bagi memenuhi permintaan bermusim untuk Hari Raya Aidilfitri dan Tahun Baharu Cina. Walau bagaimanapun, lebih kurang 70% daripada wang kertas yang dikeluarkan tidak diperlukan untuk urus niaga pembayaran biasa. Wang kertas tersebut dipulangkan sebagai deposit sejurus selepas musim perayaan dan menyebabkan lebihan pengumpulan wang kertas RM1 dan RM5 di Bank Negara Malaysia. Cetakan tambahan 500 juta keping wang kertas untuk memenuhi permintaan perayaan menyebabkan kos dan permintaan yang tinggi terhadap sumber negara. Pengeluarannya menggunakan lebih daripada 80 ton dakwat dan 2 juta kWh elektrik yang cukup bagi kegunaan 7,500 rumah di Malaysia untuk sebulan.

Bagi musim perayaan ini, orang ramai diberikan jaminan bahawa terdapat kertas yang mencukupi dalam semua denominasi. ABM dan AIBIM akan bersama-sama mengambil bahagian dalam usaha ini untuk membantu aktiviti kitar semula wang kertas yang sesuai dengan mengeluarkannya melalui cawangan bank dan mesin ATM. Orang ramai digalakkan untuk menyokong usaha nasional "Going Green" dan menyambut bulan Ramadan dan Hari Raya Aidilfitri dengan semangat mengurangkan pembaziran dengan menyokong penggunaan wang kertas edaran semula.

BNM wants more banks to join Agent Banking Programme

Another subject that is close to my heart i.e. financial inclusion. Bank Negara Malaysia has done a lot in realising the national financial inclusion agenda.

What is financial inclusion? In simple term, it means to ensure that all walk of life, regardless his/her background has easy access to financial services.

One of the measures is the implementation of agent banking, whereby banks appoint reliable agents to undertake on-site premise secured banking transactions.

Currently BSN and two commercial banks, namely Maybank and RHB are offering this facility and hopefully more and more banks will come on board.

So guys, look out for this logo when you want to do banking transactions in places where there is no physical presence of a bank branch.

Bank Negara Wants More Banks To Join Agent Banking Programme

KUALA KRAI, June 14 (Bernama) -- Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) wants more financial institutions to participate in the agent banking programme which will benefit those living in rural areas where it was difficult to enjoy banking services.

Its director of development financial and enterprise department, Kamari Zaman Juhari, said since its introduction in 2010, only three banking groups -- Malayan Banking, RHB Bank and Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) -- had participated in the programme.

"We want to encourage more banks to join and now many of them have shown interest.

"An institution will undertake a detailed study before deciding to participate in the programme which has received an encouraging response from those living in the rural areas," he told reporters after officiating BSN's two-day community programme here today.

Also present were BSN's senior vice-president/head of community business department, Azaddin Ngah Tasir.

Kamari Zaman said at end-April this year, the banks had appointed over 4,000 agents like Pos Malaysia Bhd, petrol stations, sundry shops and telecommunication companies' agents, involving transactions of over RM760 million.

"Since the introduction of this service, over 86 per cent of the districts in the country have access to the banking services compaerd with only 46 per cent at end-2011.

He said Maybank, CIMB and Public Bank cooperated with telecommunication companies early this year to offer MyMobile service to mobile phone users.

"About 100,000 users are using the service involving RM4.2 million in transactions," he said.

Meanwhile, Azaddin said BSN has over 4,000 registered bank agents nationwide handling over 6.5 million transactions worth RM580 million

He said the registered bank agent service was an innovative service offered by BSN to help those in the rural areas which had no banking services.

-- BERNAMA

Economist gives top marks to Malaysia in Islamic finance

KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 5 — The Economist has given top marks to Malaysia's progressive leadership in Islamic finance and in particular its dominance in Islamic bonds or sukuk. In a report entitled .... http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/business/article/economist-gives-top-marks-to-malaysia-in-islamic-finance/

Regulator of the Year in the Asia Pacific Region

Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has been named as the winner of Bank Regulator of the Year in the Asia Pacific Region and Best Conduct of Business Regulator Award for 2012 during the Asian Banker Risk & Regulation Conference. The Central Bank received the award at the Asian Banker Summit 2012 held at the Bangkok Convention Centre on April 25th, 2012.

BNM has demonstrated exemplary supervision and rigorous conduct, successfully steering Malaysia's financial system to emerge mostly unscathed through the global financial crisis. It has strategically positioned and promoted Malaysia as the leading Islamic financial hub in Asia, at the forefront of the international market in Islamic finance. Islamic banking now accounts for 20% of the Malaysian banking system and the Sukuk market, representing more than 50% of the Malaysian bond market.

BNM formulated various measures and policies, such as its 'Guidelines on Responsible Finance', launching a series of moves to liberalize its financial sector to facilitate cross-border business transactions and enhance business efficiency, as well as placing emphasis on consumer protection, exhibiting rigorous yet responsible supervisory conduct.

About 1,000 delegates attended the Asian Banker Summit 2012, consisting of industry specialists, senior bankers, regulators, service providers and decision makers from leading institutions in Asia, the US, Europe and Latin America, where opinions and responses of practitioners from across the region to global issues are shaped.

The awards programme, administered by The Asian Banker is Asia's most important annual risk event featuring leading practitioners from a cross-section of banks and global regulators on a number of critical areas affecting the banking industry.


Source: Jabatan Komunikasi Korporat, Bank Negara Malaysia

Nasi Lemak Kopi O

The whole department is watching live discussion on Bank Simpanan Nasional's Agent Banking.

Another initiative by Bank Negara Malaysia to enhance access to financial services.

CNY Cupcakes

Thank you Chua, May Yeow and Beverly for giving each one of us a super delicious cupcake to celebrate the arrival of water dragon year.

The butter cream cupcakes are home made by our own colleague, Zaini.

Once again, thank you ladies for your generousity. I wish you a blessed and prosperous year ahead.

Terima kasih daun keladi, boleh lah belanja lagi :)

Agent Banking? Apa Tu?

Some of you might have noticed the advert below by Bank Simpanan Nasional.

This is another initiative to ensure more Malaysians have access to basic financial services. Due to geographical and logistic issues, financial institutions are facing difficulty to establish physical presence in each corners of Malaysia. Now, with agent banking framework, financial institutions are allowed to appoint qualified agents to conduct basic financial services with unserved customers on behalf of the financial institution.

A guidelines will be issued by BNM to ensure this initiative will be implemented safely, efficiently and effectively and more importantly will safeguard the interest of consumers.

BSN has just started theirs and the Government has set a target of 5,000 agents nationwide. But I'm not sure whether the target is for BSN or for the financial sector.

I've read somewhere that some people in Sarawak had to spend two to three days to the nearest town in order to perform banking transactions.

I believe this effort, coupled with existing physical branch, internet banking and mobile banking would facilitate the aspiration of financial inclusion.

Dato' Mohd Razif Abd Kadir - A Class Act

By Rushdi Siddiqui
Published: 2011/08/10 on Business Times


AUGUST 8 2011 was a grim day as the Malaysian central bank deputy governor Datuk Mohd Razif Abdul Kadir passed away after battling an illness. Sura AlFaithah.

What is already known is that he served the central bank in many posts for 35 years of his 58 years on earth, served on many boards of financial entities such as Cagamas and INCEIF, and had numerous professional accomplishments.

I got to know Razif because of his belief, passion and energy that he dedicated to Islamic finance globally, not just Malaysia. To those that did not know the "human side" of Razif and only knew him as deputy governor, I want to share three stories about him.

First one, several years ago, I had the honour and pleasure of being on a MIFC roadshow with Razif in Amman, Jordan. I saw him in the health-club early in the morning on the treadmill as he was finishing up his routine. As he worked up a good sweat, I saw him wipe the treadmill clean of sweat droplets as a courtesy to the next user.

He didn't have to clean it as there was a person on duty in the health-club that typically undertakes such efforts. I thought to myself, a real class act in self cleaning the treadmill. Obviously, considerate of others.

During lunch time the delegation sat together, and I was running late as I was not feeling well. I sat across the table from Razif, and he, in his usual energetic self asked, "How was your workout Brother Siddiq?" I tried to mask the sick feeling, but he figured something was not right with me.
He told me to wait for five minutes and left the table in the middle of his appetiser. I thought to myself, did I miss protocol by being late and was he annoyed? No, Razif came back to his seat with a silvery packet in his hands. It was medicine he got from his room. He said "Take it brother, you should be OK in a few hours."

The gesture of this man had more impact than the actual medicine!

I don't know if this is Malaysian hospitality and/or a class act by humble man of his significant stature.

Second story, about two years, I was moderating the first session at an Islamic finance event in Dubai, and Razif was one of the panelists along with a central bank governor of an African country and a deputy governor from a Levant country. He arrived early at the conference and was sitting alone reviewing his notes. I went over to convey my respect and "salaam" and, as usual, he welcomed me with the same enthusiasm that he was known for, be it a colleague, friend, or moderator.

He did not have an entourage with him at the event, and the conference director asked me: "What was he like" and to formally introduce her to him. I suspect she expected him to be demanding on his speaking time, have large number of power point slides, and so on. Needless to say, she, like many who met Razif for the first time, was taken aback with his charm and humility.

After the panel session, it was question-and-answer time, and one of the questions from the audience was rather technical combined with regulatory and was directed towards the gentleman from Africa. Obviously, as a moderator, you don't want any of your speakers to be embarrassed, but neither he nor I had the look of being able to answer. Razif figured our look of SOS, and he took the question without coming across as "showing up" the other speaker.

Final story, I had a late afternoon meeting with Razif at Bank Negara, and the biggest challenge was getting taxi after the meeting at the bank, especially if you had a meeting afterwards across town. Our meeting ended at 5pm and it was raining. Good luck getting any taxi, no matter how reassuring the look of the security personnel at the desk.

I explained to Razif that I needed to be near the Petronas Twin Towers, and he said he was heading that way for a meeting and I could ride with him in his car. I doubt he had a meeting at the time and he was just being his usual self: kind and considerate. I was dropped off near the towers, and made the meeting.

I last saw Razif at GIFF in October 2010, the medical treatment had exacted a toll on his weight, but you could see the will to live in his eyes. We were all happy to see him witness the historic launch of the International Islamic Liquidity Management (IILM) on that day.

There are three appropriate quotes that I like to dedicate to Razif:

"If my doctor told me I had only six minutes to live, I wouldn't brood. I'd type a little faster." - Isaac Asimov

"Every man dies, Not every man really lives." - William Ross Wallace

"The death of someone we know always reminds us that we are still alive - perhaps for some purpose which we ought to re-examine." - Mignon McLaughlin.

* The writer is global head of Islamic finance for ThomsonReuters based in New York

Pengumuman Kembali ke Rahmatullah Timbalan Gabenor Dato' Mohd Razif Abd Kadir

by Jabatan Komunikasi Strategik, Bank Negara Malaysia
08 August 2011 04:00 PM


Assalamualaikum dan Salam Sejahtera,

Dukacita dimaklumkan bahawa Timbalan Gabenor, Dato' Mohd Razif Abd Kadir telah kembali ke Rahmatullah pada petang ini.

Warga kerja Bank yang ingin menziarah jenazah dan keluarga Allahyarham boleh ke Masjid Al-Ghufran, Kompleks Balai Islam, No. 6C Jalan 4/71B Pinggiran Taman Tun Dr. Ismail, Kuala Lumpur. Jenazah Allahyarham akan dikebumikan pada petang ini.

Bersama-samalah kita mendoakan semoga Allah mencucuri rahmat ke atas roh Allahyarham dan beliau ditempatkan bersama golongan yang soleh.

Al-Fatihah.