It is the product of three decades’ work in building strong foundations for the sector to thrive and grow. In reflecting on our journey of developing a vibrant Islamic financial system, imperatives in three areas stand out – Infrastructure; Players; and Talent. Allow me to briefly elaborate on these three areas. First, infrastructure. Similar to developing a conventional financial system, having a robust regulatory and supervisory regime is critical for the development of a strong, resilient and inclusive Islamic financial system. What is unique about Islamic finance is the need for a clear Shariah governance framework to ensure Shariah compliance. In Malaysia, the Islamic Financial Services Act 2013 sets out a regulatory framework for end-to-end Shariah compliance. Bank Negara Malaysia is vested with comprehensive legal powers under this Act to regulate and supervise the Islamic financial system. Complementary to this is the role of the Shariah Advisory Council in ensuring greater certainty in Shariah. While our Shariah Governance Framework has met its intended objectives, we are now in the midst of reviewing and strengthening the framework in response to the evolvement of the industry. The Securities Commission Malaysia and the Labuan Financial Services Authority are also vested with similar powers, and are equally committed to building a robust and comprehensive framework for Islamic finance in Malaysia. Our policies also strive to be forward looking and responsive to the needs of the world.
Peter Praet: Interview in Knack Interview with Mr Peter Praet, Member of the Executive Board of the European Central Bank, in Knack, conducted by Mr Ewald Pironet and published on 6 January 2016. *  *  *  For over a year now, the European Central Bank (ECB) has been printing heaps of money, pumping it into the economy and pushing interest rates down to almost 0%. When may this policy be deemed a success? You may label that ECB policy a success if inflation, the rise in the cost of living, stays below, but close to, 2% over the medium term. That is our mandate. I admit that our policy has not yet been successful enough: inflation rates in Europe have been at the very low level of almost 0% for quite some time now. That is why we are continuing to take the necessary measures to drive inflation up to 2% over the medium term. However, the point at which we think we will reach 2% is constantly postponed, because all kinds of things are happening that are dampening inflation, such as the decline in oil prices or lower economic performances in the emerging countries. We have decided to maintain our policy until March 2017. But we need to be careful not to jeopardise the ECB’s credibility by shifting that horizon. It is up to the ECB to keep inflation at just below 2%, but it is failing to do so.