Zeti Akhtar Aziz: Raising standards in Malaysia’s financial services industry Remarks by Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia (Bank Negara Malaysia), at the Centre of Excellence (ACE) Ground Breaking Ceremony, Kuala Lumpur, 22 February 2016. *  *  *  It is my very great pleasure to be here on the occasion of the ground breaking ceremony to the ACE – A Centre of Excellence. ACE is a very much welcomed industry led initiative to raise the level of capability and professionalism for the work force in the Malaysian financial services industry. Our financial services industry continues to be reshaped and transformed by several major forces of change that range from the new demands of consumers and businesses to the rapid advancement in technology, the global regulatory reforms and the continued globalisation of finance. On the domestic front we are also seeing the continued rapid expansion of the domestic financial services industry, and the deepening of regional economic and financial integration. Given the paramount role of the financial system in supporting our real economy we require a financial system that will best serve our economy. It not only needs to be effective and efficient and thus competitive but also robust and resilient. Going forward, operating in this highly dynamic environment will become increasingly more challenging. Today the Malaysian financial industry employs more than 150,000 people, and requires approximately 73,000 new hires over the next 10 years.
With the changes that are reshaping the financial system, skills requirements in the financial industry will also change. Today new careers are also being created in more diverse areas including in areas of finance that have leveraged on technology such as in internet based services. Further challenges will arise from the intensification of competition for talent in a more borderless workplace. Given the importance of talent to performance greater attention needs to be accorded to talent development. There also continues to be an acute talent shortage of such skilled talent in our financial services industry. If left unresolved it will impede future growth and performance of the industry. This existing significant skills gap is already becoming a constraint on industry growth. Indicators from the AIF Skills Gap Index, which measures skills gaps within the workforce, point to a significant deficit in several skill sets that are considered important in the financial services industry. The creation of ACE represents an important step in efforts to provide a comprehensive and integrated solution for such skills and talent development for the industry. At the executive level, leadership, corporate governance and ethics are issues that have dominated attention in global finance given the need to recognise the importance of sustainable outcomes. There are high expectations of the financial industry to demonstrate responsible leadership that will also embrace a strong moral compass in its operations. Education and professional development have a key role in bringing to the forefront these important issues for the industry.