KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) has urged the financial industry to deepen collaboration and embrace innovation amid increasingly complex and costly digital-age crimes.
Governor Datuk Abdul Rasheed Ghaffour said financial institutions must work across sectors and leverage technology to tackle emerging threats such as online fraud, cybercrime and money laundering.
“The evolving digital and financial landscape requires greater agility and collaboration to combat threats. Swift sharing of information and expertise is essential in our fight against financial crimes,” he said in his opening address at the 15th International Conference on Financial Crime and Terrorism Financing (IFCTF) 2025 here yesterday.
Abdul Rasheed said faster information-sharing and coordinated responses between government agencies, financial institutions and the communications industry were key to curbing illicit activities.
Citing the National Scam Response Centre (NSRC) as a successful model, he said the centre has received 263,683 calls, seized RM12.91 million, and returned RM1.99 million to victims as of the third quarter of 2025.
He also highlighted the National Fraud Portal (NFP), launched in August 2024 by BNM, PayNet and financial institutions, which has enhanced the industry’s ability to trace and block fraudulent transactions.
“Between January and June this year, the portal prevented RM369 million in scam-related losses, building on RM399 million deterred throughout 2024,” he said, adding that upgrades are under way to shorten tracing times, expand data integration, and apply predictive analytics for faster detection of mule accounts and fraudulent transfers.
He said discussions during MyFintech Week 2025 reflected growing interest in AI-powered compliance tools, e-KYC innovation and cross-border regulatory cooperation.
“When it comes to tackling financial crimes, anti-money laundering (AML) measures and infrastructure cannot remain stagnant. The financial industry must explore creative solutions and leverage on the latest technology,” he said.
Abdul Rasheed noted that the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has also recognised the growing use of artificial intelligence to strengthen compliance, enhance real-time supervision, and improve risk assessment.
He urged industry players to move from commitment to execution.
“Every training, every forum and every sharing session must go beyond mere discussions. Together, let us turn these conversations into concrete actions to combat financial crimes more effectively,” he said.
