BNM 'sleeping too long' on fraud cases, time to intervene, advisory body tells Anwar

SHAH ALAM - The Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim has been urged to intervene and transform Bank Negara Malaysia's (BNM) management due to its inefficiency, especially in dealing with cases of international fraud syndicates.

Social Protection Contributor Advisory Services Association (SPCAAM) International Labour Adviser Callistus Antony D'Angelus claimed that Bank Negara has been 'sleeping' for too long in the course of its functions.

"The time has come for the prime minister to appoint leaders and technocrats to lead BNM to act in line with his reform agenda and not hinder the efforts he is taking," he said in a statement.

Callistus, further added that an international fraud syndicate has infiltrated five Malaysian banks with at least 20 employees of the five banks, including auditors and front-line officers, assisting the syndicate in establishing bank accounts.

He said Bank Negara Governor Tan Sri Nor Shamsiah Mohd Yunus had reportedly stated that the five banks were not investigated and the focus was on the employees involved.

"It cannot be argued that the individuals involved should be investigated and criminally prosecuted as appropriate," he said.

But he said limiting the investigation only to workers involved is like dealing with the symptoms and ignoring the causes.

"The reason international fraud syndicates can penetrate the system is due to the inefficient compliance, risk management, and control mechanisms of the banks involved.

"BNM should play a direct role in investigating the bank and disclose the results of the investigation to the public. Accountability should be at the highest level of the banks involved, which starts at the office of the Chief Executive Officer," he added.

Callistus said that banks and the financial system as a whole are the custodians of public funds, and banks also function as the basis of any country's economic system.

"The East Asian economic crisis in the late 1990s, the Global Financial Crisis of 2008, and recent failure of Silicon Valley and Signature Banks in the United States (US) are examples of when a banking or monetary crisis leads to an economic crisis.

"In fact, in crises like this, the losers are not the banks, but ordinary people," he said.