Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus: Value based intermediation - beyond profit Keynote address by Ms Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara Malaysia), at the Global Islamic Finance Forum 2018 (GIFF) "Value Based Intermediation - Beyond Profit", Kuala Lumpur, 3 October 2018. * * * Henry Ford, credited with revolutionising the American transportation industry in the 20th century, once remarked that “Business must be run at a profit, else it will die. But when anyone attempts to run a business solely for profit and thinks not at all of the service to the community, then also the business must die, for it no longer has a reason for existence”. Nearly a hundred years since, these words of wisdom remain true. Perhaps, even more so now than ever. Indeed, we have witnessed time and again, episodes of excessiveness, and the sole and unchecked pursuit of profits, that have led to global financial crises. The theme of this conference, “Value Based Intermediation – Beyond Profit”, is therefore a fitting reminder of the role of finance, and Islamic finance in particular, in helping build a more resilient and sustainable future. In the past half century, the world economy expanded sixfold, despite experiencing the worst and most expensive financial crisis. Average per capita income more than doubled to about USD11,000, compared to only about USD5,000 in 1967. People are living longer, with better quality of life, greater access to basic necessities, improved health and medical care, and better education.
The financial stability analyses focus on macroeconomic stability factors and on the strength and soundness of the financial system as a whole. The Bank addresses both these principal areas with a strong professional ambition. Its two main fields of analysis reinforce each other and benefit from close cooperation among the staff. Both areas have forced us to put our analyses, projections and policies on a longer-term perspective which provides an opportunity for better overall economic and monetary policy management. Although much remains to be explained about the nature of the interaction of monetary and financial stability, I mentioned earlier that a sound financial system is a precondition for economic and monetary stability and the implementation of an effective monetary policy. In this respect, these areas support each other. Since financial liberalisation was introduced, we have not faced circumstances where financial stability concerns have directly affected or conflicted with monetary policy decisions. Our aim is to prevent such a situation from arising. The potential risks to financial stability at the end of the last upswing were defused by the swift achievement of monetary stability and the restoration of internal and external balance. In conclusion, I would like to repeat my warm welcome to all the participants in the seminar. I trust that both the seminar and your stay in Iceland will be interesting and rewarding, professionally and socially. BIS Review 34/2004  3