. in 2023, new life insurance business premiums grew 11. 6 % to rm13. 4 billion. in parallel, the industry paid out around rm15. 4 billion in claims, offering crucial financial protection to households when they need it the most. further ashore, we are observing that domestic insurance markets are becoming increasingly interconnected, driven by deeper regional integration across asean. with a population of over 650 million people, an expanding middle class and an ageing population, asean presents the insurance industry with significant opportunities to broaden its reach and cater to diversified protection needs. 1 / 5 bis - central bankers'speeches against this backdrop, i want to touch on the'3ts'that the industry needs to embrace in shaping the future of life insurance in malaysia and beyond. let's start with the first't ', which is technology and digitalisation. technology and digitalisation offer new possibilities to close protection gaps by making insurance more accessible and affordable, particularly for more vulnerable segments of society. integrated digital ecosystems and emerging technologies, such as ai, open up opportunities to reach malaysians who may not have considered insurance before. insurers tapping into new and innovative technologies can develop more suitable protection products with tailored coverage and pricing, facilitate easier access to products, and make customer experiences more seamless. it is not hard to imagine a future digital ecosystem where malaysians can access, understand, and get insurance cover as easy as ordering an e - hailing ride – just a few clicks on a mobile phone. to support digitalisation, bnm has recently enhanced the financial technology sandbox framework, including to introduce a green lane track to speed up the testing of innovative insurance solutions while ensuring regulatory compliance. we have also issued the licensing and regulatory framework for digital insurance and takaful operators ( ditos ), paving the way for new players to innovate and fill existing protection gaps. additionally, we continue to facilitate the implementation of e - kyc and mydigital id in the financial sector, as well as the orderly adoption of ai that will advance digitalisation and expand use cases across the financial sector. some of you have already embarked on this journey and leveraged such regulatory advancements with digital innovations that bring us closer to the seamless and accessible insurance experience that we envisioned. we urge others to join this journey in building an industry that is truly fit for this digital age. moving on to the second't ', transformation to meet the evolving consumer demands. by 204

the potential for instability and inequitable concentration of wealth. the adoption of islamic financial principles encourages financing to be primarily adopted as a means to facilitate real underlying economic transactions and not for speculative purposes. there are also clear value propositions in islamic finance for both investors and issuers from both regions. for investors, islamic financial products offer portfolio diversification and new investment opportunities as they avail themselves to a new asset class. they also encourage risk management and provides confidence through explicit disclosure and transparency of the roles and responsibilities defined in the contract. for issuers, islamic finance allows access to a new source of funds and liquidity besides providing, new risk management options and new mechanisms for price discovery. islamic finance is well positioned to be a vehicle on the new silk road, as the enabling supporting infrastructure is already in place. the required regulatory and legal frameworks for islamic finance have been established, not only in a growing number of countries in both regions but also at the international level through standard - setting bodies such as the international financial services board and the accounting and auditing organization for islamic financial institutions ( aaoifi ). efforts towards the harmonisation of shariah interpretations and issues concerning mutual recognition are at an advanced stage. the platforms for extending regional linkages and cross - border initiatives, including to the middle east, are already in place within asia, where there has been a significant degree of regional financial and economic integration. malaysia as an intermediary destination along the new silk road malaysia is committed to and extensively engaged in strengthening linkages through islamic finance. in collaboration with the participation of the industry representing the banking, takaful and capital markets in malaysia, the regulators have worked towards enhancing the inter - linkages with the global estimates based on the listing of islamic financial institutions provided by the institute of islamic banking and insurance, london. data sourced from islamic finance information service website. the islamic financial deals mostly based on murabahah, ijarah, mudharabah, istisna principles. islamic financial markets, not only by the further development of the islamic financial infrastructure but also through increased liberalisation and through the implementation of measures to increase competitiveness of the financial services sector. this has included further liberalisation of the capital account of the balance of payments and the implementation of tax neutrality measures. just as historical malacca was a key port along the ancient trade routes between asia and the middle east, it is envisaged that malaysia would serve as a key destination along the new silk road. today