Consumer Credit Legislation To Be Introduced, Says Malaysian Governor

KUALA LUMPUR, Sept 23 (Bernama) -- Consumer credit legislation will be introduced to protect businesses and households that deal with financial intermediaries, says Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Muhammad Ibrahim. In announcing this, he said BNM, the Malaysia's central bank was currently working with the government to formulate the legislation. "The financial intermediaries are not licenced financial institutions," he told participants of the one-day 'Future Finance Conference 2016', held here Friday. Muhammad said appropriate arrangements were also being considered to drive and support the development of alternative financing vehicles to serve the financing needs of small businesses. He added that the financial sector continued to assume its intermediary role in financing the economy, in particular small and medium enterprises (SMEs). As at end-July, financing by the banking system to businesses and SMEs stood at US$129.36 billion (RM533 billion), growing at an average annual rate of 9.9 per cent between 2011 and 2015. Banks remained the largest lenders to SMEs and this relations would likely remain, thanks to the high financing approval rate of close to 80 per cent, he added. --BERNAMA