I look forward to the productive and engaging discussions during this conference, and wish you a pleasant stay in Kuala Lumpur. I shall now invite the ISI President, Professor Vijay Nair to deliver his Opening Remarks. 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches
Similarly, the Appointed Overseas Office framework which was expanded in 2017 has facilitated wider access to the Malaysian market. The launch of the AOO pilot programme in August this year has further enhanced market liquidity and reduced transaction costs for larger volume transactions by allowing inter-AOO squaring of positions for more efficient price discovery. With 168 AOOs from 22 banking groups operating in 36 countries, market access to the onshore Malaysian markets continues to grow. To meet the need for continuous communications with investors, market participants and intermediaries alike, the Bank developed dedicated webpages for investors interested in the developments of the Malaysian financial market. There are continuous updates on what is new in our markets, and important updates on Foreign Exchange Administration rules that market participants may use as a point of reference in their ringgit dealings. Many of these initiatives focus on increasing efficiency, access and transparency. However, the reality is that markets will always be imperfect. In the 1970s through to the 1990s, we were told that financial markets can be relied upon to be efficient, that prices will reflect all available public information and hence appropriately reflect the fundamentals of an instrument or asset. Regulators were asked to leave markets alone. Liberalisation and deregulation were the two key themes and policy push on emerging markets that would enable the development of liquid financial markets. Then in the 1990s, the Asian Financial Crisis happened. Together with liberalisation and deregulation came excessive speculation and destabilising capital flows.