are then left underserved. third, many of the global players operating in asean today continues to operate as foreign players and act as conduits to their head offices. invested capital could be hedged back to their home countries. annual profits and fees received are repatriated. this in turn has resulted in, among others, persistent outflow of funds to the home countries. this practice has continued to put pressure on the host country ’ s balance of payments. foreign players should do more to invest in the host country and truly make the host country their home country as well. on another front, efforts should concurrently be directed towards strengthening the underwriting and retention capacity of the regional insurance and reinsurance markets. what about the domestic players? having benefitted from the partnership with their foreign counterparts, domestic and home - grown insurers in asean also need to do more to serve the protection and financial needs in their countries and the region. having domestic players as part of the insurance landscape is a goal that is shared by most countries, if not preferred by all. the progressive approach towards integrating the regional insurance market already recognises the unique circumstances and different stages of development in each asean member state. this is intended to provide lead time to domestic players to prepare themselves for regional insurance integration. unfortunately, many of the domestic players have yet to develop their own competitive advantage. they have yet to reach a sizeable scale of operations in order to compete effectively against their foreign counterparts. as the region moves into the next phase of growth and progresses towards becoming a more integrated market, domestic players will need to strengthen their capacity and capability, or risk being driven out of the market. reshaping the landscape of the asean insurance industry asean ’ s economic and financial sector growth will see the insurance industry grow correspondingly. given the potential, it could grow faster but it will require the insurance industry players to step up and seize the opportunities. amid the advent of industry 4. 0 and digitalisation, much needs to be done to transform into the players for this new phase. besides technology, 2 / 4 bis central bankers'speeches this is also a phase where consumer interests and protecting the well - being of the underserved have become more important goals for societies. the industry needs to take notice that with the democratisation of information and knowledge through technology, the balance has shifted to favour the consumers and public at large. this implies that consumer - centric propositions have become increasingly important to meet the needs and circumstances

banking sector is one of the key drivers in the financial sector. this is further motivated by the approach of the ‘ asean way ’, which is premised on the region ’ s belief and recognition of strength in diversity. important regional agreements such as the asean banking integration framework have encapsulated the principles of inclusiveness, attainment of mutual benefits and individual country readiness in supporting the regionalisation of asean banks. however, an important point that should not be forgotten is that the financial sector encompasses a wider scope than just banks. in fact, policymakers in asean have been successful in enlarging the borders of our financial markets by developing more diverse sources of funding for the economy. this is best reflected in the building of deeper and more liquid bond markets arising from the experience of the 1997 asian financial crisis. we are also seeing a shift in the financial landscape through the usage of technology, something that i will elaborate more on later. thus, the term bankers without borders, should perhaps, be expanded to be finance without borders. yet, despite the positive outcomes from these and the continued strong need for openness, the conviction for globalisation and international banking seems to be waning. for one, post the global financial crisis, we have seen the rationalisation of operations by many international banks. 1 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches we read regularly on the prospects of trade protectionism, how globalisation has created widening inequality and how globalisation is like a train running out of control. no doubt, a key driver of the 2007 / 2008 financial crisis was indeed financial liberalisation going too far. interestingly, some, including economists at the bank of england have also begin to consider the theory of “ peak finance ” – that global finance has peaked and financial de - globalisation has begun, while others at the bis have argued otherwise. international banking and finance – a new model for a new era while this debate will surely continue to unfold over the coming years, perhaps the more pertinent question is how we can evolve the model of international banking such that it becomes more desirable and beneficial for the needs of the future. it is worth considering a new model – one that is inherently more sustainable and inclusive. if i may postulate, the starting point is perhaps an honest appraisal that international banking ought to be much more than just a commercial decision. beyond considerations of revenue, margins and returns, international banking should fundamentally be more attuned to and invested in the developmental journey of the