The government has taken a number of preemptive measures to strengthen Malaysia's banking system, which has come under increasing stress since the onset of the regional financial crisis in mid-1997. Citibank operates branches in both Kuala Lumpur and Penang. Malaysia also has an offshore banking center on the island of Labuan where 51 offshore banks maintained offices as of mid-1997.
Most Malaysian banks have correspondent relationships with banks in the United States.
A list of major Malaysian commercial banks can be found in Chapter XI of this report. Exports to Malaysia may be financed through letters of credit issued to importers by banks in Malaysia. Finance is readily available on the domestic market to Malaysian importers. There are no foreign exchange controls which would impede trade. The Malaysian Ringgit is freely convertible except for Israeli, Serbian and Montenegran currency.