Malaysia also made significant investments in talent development for the financial services sector. Given its significance in defining performance and resilience of the financial sector, comprehensive institutional arrangements have been put in place for all levels of the industry; at the entry point, at the working and specialist levels, at the professional level and at the leadership levels including for the boards of financial institutions. Finally, as the financial system became more regionally and internationally more integrated, regional financial stability arrangements have also been established. These included advancing collective initiatives in the areas of regional surveillance, the development of regional financial markets and payments infrastructure, and cross-border supervision. Forums for assessment of risks to regional financial stability have also been initiated, and work on establishing an integrated crisis management and resolution framework for the region is in progress. As part of these initiatives, a regional support mechanism has also been established. With these pre-conditions in place, Malaysia commenced initiatives to internationalise our financial system beginning 2003. The internationalisation of the financial sector entailed the advancement in two main areas; financial sector liberalisation and capital account liberalisation. In pursuing greater regional and international financial integration, the aim was to enhance the diversity of the financial system in terms of its product offerings, to improve further the competitiveness of the financial system and to strengthen our economic linkages with the region and other parts of the world. The financial sector liberalisation involved increased foreign entry and participation in our financial system.

Zeti Akhtar Aziz: Global financial stability and the internationalisation of financial systems in emerging economies Speech by Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia, at the EuromoneyQatar Conference “Global financial stability and the internationalisation of financial systems in emerging economies”, Doha, 11 December 2012. *  *  *  It is my honour to be here in Doha to speak at this Euromoney-Qatar Conference on “Global Finance Re-designed”. I wish to thank the Qatar Central Bank for the invitation to speak at this event. In this current global environment, the unprecedented and wide ranging global policy responses have yet to produce financial stability and a sustainable recovery of the global economy. The intensification of the globalization of finance in this decade has resulted in an even more connected and interdependent world. While the financial systems and economies in most parts of the world felt the effects of the recent global financial crisis, it has not discouraged the pace of internationalization of financial systems, in particular, in emerging economies. My address this morning will be on financial stability and the internationalization of financial systems in emerging economies. My remarks will cover the benefits and challenges of such internationalization, the lessons that can be drawn from the recent global financial crisis, the Malaysian experience on the internationalization of our financial system. Benefits and challenges of internationalisation of financial systems While there are significant benefits from internationalization of financial systems, the resulting increased international financial integration brings with it new risks and challenges.