. earlier multi - year reforms to digital financial infrastructures, especially on e - payments, also proved to be useful. consumers and businesses could transition to low - touch demands with greater ease. 34. in fulfilling the aspirations set out in the blueprint, all these experiences will continue to be relevant as the financial sector plays its part to secure the future of malaysia. conclusion 35. let me conclude. the future ahead will be challenging, highly uncertain and unpredictable. however, we are not in a crisis, our growth trajectory remains positive and we should remain confident about the future. the next one to two years will present a crucial window for malaysia to be taking bold steps forward. as a country, we must now focus on strengthening our economic fundamentals, resilience and flexibility. our neighbours within the region are actively pressing on with reform measures. we run the risk of being left behind if we do not act now. 36. i am confident that we as a nation can achieve this if we put our minds and importantly, act together. history is instructive. we have time and time again, done what is necessary to transform ourselves to reach for greater heights. i am certain that this time is no different. thank you. [ 1 ] based on the dxy, which is measured by the us dollar against a basket of major currencies.

investors, including from the middle east, to leverage on malaysia as an investment gateway to tap the rapidly growing investment opportunities in the east asian region. thirdly, this partnership also serves to enhance malaysia as a centre of product innovation in islamic finance. indeed, conscious efforts have been made to ensure a conducive environment for innovation in malaysia, including the development of the necessary pool of expertise and talent to drive such innovation. within bank islam itself, there is a track record and brand name for innovation, with the development of new business models and product offerings. this partnership would thus contribute towards accelerating this process and towards serving as a bridge to strengthen the relationship of the islamic financial markets as well as the investment and trade ties between the west asian and north african regions, with east asia. strengthening the capital of a financial institution, however, is not the only factor that will determine its capacity and potential to perform. equally important is the quality of its talent, the systems that it has in place, in particular, its risk management and ict systems and its governance structure, its leadership and its corporate culture. thus, while this capitalisation exercise will put bank islam in a stronger position to tap new opportunities, all the other elements also need to be in place to enable the institution to realise its true potential. sound corporate governance and effective management of banking institutions are vital to ensure their effective and sound functioning. in particular, significant shareholders are expected to play an active role to ensure that capable individuals are appointed on the board and senior management of banking institutions. bank negara malaysia had as early as 2001 required the board and management of bank islam to undertake remedial actions on several operational and control weaknesses. when the weaknesses were not adequately addressed, the process of reconstituting the board and management of bank islam was initiated in 2003. in such an exercise, key shareholders are expected to be proactive in making prudent and responsible action to remove any member or employee that is found to be unsuitable or not having the required calibre so as to avoid a prolonged process in the reconstruction of the board and management of the bank. it needs to be recognized that the responsibility for the safety and soundness at the institutional level rests primarily with the board and the management of each banking institution and the key stakeholders such as the significant shareholders. institutional investors should also have an active role and make swift and bold decisions in ensuring that only capable individuals are appointed and remain on the board and senior management of banking institutions.