BNM to establish financial threat intelligence platform

Veteran bank governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz has her eye on rising inflation, which has turned real interest rates negative. At its last meeting in May, it said it might need to act to counter a

KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), together with the financial industry, is in the process of establishing a Financial Threat Intelligence Platform.   

Its governor Datuk Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus said the platform would collate, analyse and disseminate real-time information on cyber threats and trends to strengthen the detective capabilities of the industry against such threats. 

“We expect to operationalise the platform before the year-end. I am also pleased to announce the establishment of a dedicated innovation lab, right here in Sasana Kijang,” she said in her opening speech at the inaugural MyFintech Week 2019 here today. 

Sasana Kijang, established by BNM in 2011, is a centre of excellence in knowledge and learning in central banking and financial services. Among others, it houses the South East Asian Central Banks (SEACEN) Centre and BNM Museum and Art Gallery.

Nor Shamsiah noted that the lab would provide a collaborative environment for the purpose of creating, elaborating, and prototyping innovative solutions to clearly defined problem statements. 

The central bank will also start with open and fair access to a shared payment infrastructure for banks and non-banks alike. 

“It is also important to recognise the need for other digital public infrastructures as key enablers to harness the full potential of fintech (financial technology). These include having a national digital identity system, framework for open API (application programming interface) and open banking, clear cloud policy and nationwide broadband connectivity,” said Nor Shamsiah. 

Meanwhile, BNM will also differentiating its regulatory and supervisory approach to capture new sources and transmission of risks while allowing room for experimentation and for firms to develop economies of scale.

“An important objective will be minimising regulatory arbitrage, which can lead to risks building up in parts of the financial system that may be subject to differentiated regulations.

“We anticipate that this will call for a much more dynamic approach to regulation and supervision as well as better communication of regulatory developments going forward,” said Nor Shamsiah. - Bernama