Some key examples already underway include recalibrated regimes for digital bank and digital insurers as well as our collaboration with the Securities Commission on digital assets. We have also collaborated with Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation on ‘fintech booster’, a programme that aims to provide capacity building resources for companies to develop fintech solutions, including legal and compliance support. These initiatives are in line with our regulatory efforts to remove undue barriers to competition and innovation, as well as address market failures. Third, alternate forms of capital will be key in supporting the holistic and broader growth of businesses, including start-ups. Specifically, alternative finance instruments, such as venture capital (or VCs) and peer-to-peer lending, can help fill the funding gap for early stage and growth stage firms, who typically possess risk profiles less suited for bank-based debt financing. Alternative finance instruments can also help crowd-in additional capital from other large private and public capital providers, enabling firms to support their subsequent stages of growth, as well as foster a greater culture of innovation, dynamism, and entrepreneurship in the Malaysian economy. At present, the domestic alternative finance industry is still nascent. According to our estimates, 3/4  BIS central bankers' speeches  Malaysia’s alternative finance market size constitutes only 0.2% of GDP, which is small when compared to developed and peer markets. Realising the need to accelerate growth of this area, we have identified several strategies to develop alternative finance under the Financial Sector Blueprint 2022–2026.

The late Henry Ford once said, ‘If you had asked people what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse’. The industry needs to lead development. As a regulator, we want our financial sector to benefit from continuous progressive development, but without creating undue financial or monetary stability risks. Our message to investors and fintech players would then be, keep innovating with these perspectives in mind. Rest assured, we will play our part in promoting a safe and conducive environment for innovation. As part of our initiative, we also from time to time, organise challenge events to recognise innovation and impactful solutions through incentives and awards. The most recent being during MyFintech week. But later in the year, we will have another event and recognition series. I would thus like to invite you to participate in the Royal Award for Islamic Finance Impact Challenge Prize 2022. This is a new initiative that aims to reward innovative creations and solutions that strengthen the economic and social resilience of financially impacted communities globally through the application of Shariah principles. But you’ll have to hurry as applications have been open awhile and will close on 25 March 2022. With that, I wish you success and a productive engagement today. Thank you. 1 Various publications of Fintech Malaysia Report 2  McKinsey article, June 2021, “Financial data unbound: The value of open data for individuals and institutions” [Link to article]  4/4  BIS central bankers' speeches