CIMB Bank and CIMB Thai Appointed by BNM and BOT as Appointed Cross Currency Dealers for the Settlement of Ringgit-Baht Trade

Paves the way for greater currency cooperation and economic integration between both countries  

Kuala Lumpur: Bank Negara Malaysia (“BNM”) and Bank of Thailand (‘BOT”) have respectively appointed CIMB Bank and CIMB Thai as Appointed Cross Currency Dealers (“ACCD”) for the settlement of ringgit-baht trade under the newly launched Local Currency Settlement Framework.

The Local Currency Settlement Framework had been jointly established by BNM and BOT to promote the use of Malaysian ringgit and Thai baht between Malaysia and Thailand to settle cross-border trade and direct investments. This marks the first bilateral currency settlement framework within ASEAN, aimed at providing an alternative settlement framework for the USD 22 billion trade between Malaysia and Thailand. The framework would, among other things, benefit businesses by reducing the risks associated with the volatility of global settlement currencies as well as lowering transaction costs.

Tengku Dato’ Sri Zafrul Aziz, Chief Executive, CIMB Group said, “We are honoured to be part of this inaugural bilateral currency settlement framework within ASEAN and to be amongst the first banks in the region to offer the direct settlement of Ringgit and Baht. This is indeed a milestone to boost investment development and foster closer economic ties between the two countries.”

“This appointment is a validation of CIMB’s value proposition as a leading ASEAN universal bank, through our strong network in both countries, represented by 298 branches in Malaysia and 123 branches in Thailand. As such, we are well positioned to support the myriad of business needs of our customers and facilitate the currency cooperation effort. We look forward to participate in future cross currency arrangements with the other ASEAN countries in the future”, Tengku Zafrul concluded.