The other Nordic countries deregulated credit and housing markets, but this was followed by growth bubbles. At the same time, monetary policy was tightened in order to stabilise the exchange rate and rein in high inflation. This proved to be impossible without a sharp fall in the level of activity and employment, and high interest rates shook the financial system. Following the crises, the Nordic countries were not locked into a low growth trap. Many enterprises were closed. This freed up labour and other resources that could be channelled to new areas. The decline in itself provided fertile ground for innovation and entrepreneurship – we experienced creative destruction in the Nordic economies. An elaborate system of direct regulation of activities in the business sector and the labour market was devised in the post-war period. Loans from banks and financial undertakings were regulated through quotas that were set out in a separate credit budget and state banks accounted for a substantial share of credit to households and enterprises. Cross-border capital movements – for example non-resident rights to buy Norwegian equities and Norwegian enterprises' access to foreign funding – were regulated by separate quotas. The government authorities set both short-term and long-term interest rates at a low level, with demand for credit periodically outstripping supply. Credit was rationed. The krone exchange rate was in principle fixed, but was frequently adjusted when cost inflation spiralled out of control despite extensive regulation. House prices in cities were regulated, with queues and under-the-table transactions.

As the Government has initiated various efforts to integrate people with disabilities into all aspects of life, the financial industry should also continue to play a more pro-active role in providing an enabling environment to ensure that their fundamental rights to have access to the banking and insurance products and services are actively promoted. Taking into account the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008, the financial industry are expected to give appropriate consideration and take necessary measures to ensure services and facilities are accessible by all in the OKU community. Clearly, these obligations signify our accountability and responsibility towards providing the necessary access for members of the OKU community and not to deny their rights to be included in our financial system. Moving forward, under the RMK11 recently announced, the Uniform Building By-Laws, 1984 is going to be strengthened with greater mandate to include the enforcement power of the authorities. With this possible enhancement to the legislation, the financial industry need to be ready to face this changing landscape whereby there is a possibility that action could be taken against those service providers that fail to provide the enabling environment to the OKUs. Against these backdrop of higher expectation from the OKU, stronger legislation and our aspiration of more inclusive financial system, today’s program provides a platform for us to further understand the needs of the disabled, to be more preemptive and anticipatory in our approach and to collaboratively work towards ensuring that the financial industry of Malaysia becomes completely disabled-friendly and truly inclusive.