Mohd Razif bin Abd Kadir: Promoting the takaful industry in Malaysia Speech by Mr Mohd Razif bin Abd Kadir, Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia, at the Launch of ING Public Takaful Ehsan, Kuala Lumpur, 5 April 2011. *  *  *  It is my pleasure to be here with you this morning for the official launch of ING Public Takaful Ehsan. Indeed, this momentous occasion, which also celebrates an alliance between ING Management Holdings (M) Sdn Bhd, Public Bank Bhd and Public Islamic Bank Berhad, signifies yet another milestone in our continuous endeavour to provide sufficient financial safety net for the general population and at the same time, promote the development of a progressive takaful industry, that is agile, dynamic and able to adapt to the increasingly challenging environment. In 2009, Bank Negara Malaysia unveiled the plan to issue 2 new family takaful licences as part of the initiative to increase the penetration rate of insurance and takaful as well as to further liberalise the financial sector. Despite the prevailing tough global economic conditions and uncertainties in the international financial environment back then, an overwhelmingly strong number of applications were subsequently received, which led to the issuance of 4 family takaful licences instead of 2 as originally planned. This speaks volume of the interest and confidence of leading market players in the growth prospects of the takaful industry in Malaysia. For more than 2 decades, the takaful industry has been blessed with tremendous growth and strong performance.

It is our earnest aspiration that the entry of ING Public Takaful Ehsan will further add to the dynamism and vigour of the takaful industry. With this strategic alliance between 2 financial groups of such calibre, Bank Negara Malaysia looks forward to strong management stewardship, innovative product offerings, wide distribution channels, operational and service excellence as well as breakthrough business strategies that are well-matched by robust risk management capabilities. I am confident that ING Public Takaful Ehsan will benefit greatly from the synergies and complementary strengths of its shareholders, by drawing upon the combined wealth of market experience, technical underwriting expertise, multi-channel distribution network and infrastructure, to successfully make its mark as one of the leading takaful operator, both domestically and on the global front. 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  In the pursuit to seize the growing business opportunities in the increasingly competitive environment, building a pool of highly skilled and knowledgeable workforce must remain a strategic priority for takaful operators. As a knowledge-intensive industry, human capital can indeed be a potent weapon of competitive advantage for the industry. As the industry seeks to achieve a higher level of competitiveness, increased product complexity, business sophistication, service excellence and the global nature of competition are all demanding greater depth and breadth of leadership, knowledge, competence and skills of industry professionals. Adding to the demands for increased organisational capabilities is the changing regulatory landscape towards risk-based capital, soon-to-be implemented for the Malaysian takaful industry, which places greater prominence on strong risk management culture.