On 14 September the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) announced that it has signed a series of FinTech cooperation agreements with several regulators in major financial centres. The SC has established FinTech bridges with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This follows the first agreement signed between the SC and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in June 2017.

These agreements are designed to facilitate greater information sharing on emerging trends and regulatory developments. They will also try to aid referrals of innovative businesses seeking to operate in each other’s jurisdictions and the exploration of potential joint innovation projects. These efforts will help shape the regulatory approach and encourage the growth of digital finance within Malaysia. The SC Chairman Tan Sri Ranjit Ajit Singh said that these cooperation agreements would also shape up-to-date regulations that would strengthen Malaysia’s market for FinTech and digital innovation in capital markets.

The SC has also in recent years introduced regulations on digital investment management services, and launched the alliance of FINtech community (aFINity) initiative to engage with the growing financial technology community in Malaysia. SC will be holding its fourth SCXSC Digital Finance Conference 2017 on 6 and 7 November this year.