24/09/2025

BIZ & FINANCE WEDNESDAY | SEPT 24, 2025

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Malaysian Paper

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M’sia sets new benchmark for digital trust and maturity

BNM international reserves climb to US$122.8b on Sept 12 KUALA LUMPUR: The international reserves of Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) rose to US$122.8 billion (RM515.5 billion) as of Sept 12 from US$122.7 billion on Aug 29 . In a statement, the central bank said the reserves position is sufficient to finance 4.8 months of imports of goods and services, and is 0.9 times the total short-term external debt. The main components of the reserves were foreign currency reserves (US$109.2 billion), the International Monetary Fund’s reserve position (US$1.3 billion), special drawing rights US$5.9 billion), gold (US$4.1 billion) and other reserve assets (US$2.3 billion), it added. Bank Negara said total assets amounted to RM628.38 billion while total capital and liabilities amounted to RM628.38 billion. – Bernama “The additional flights by Batik Air and HK Express will further strengthen Penang International Airport’s position in the international route network,” he noted. – Bernama Batik Air to launch S’pore-Penang route, HK Express to increase flights GEORGE TOWN: Penang is set to welcome more international visitors following announcements by Batik Air Malaysia and HK Express to expand air connectivity to the state in the coming months. State Tourism and Economic Committee chairman Wong Hon Wai said Batik Air will launch a new direct route between Singapore and Penang in December, providing a significant boost to the state’s tourism sector. “Singapore has long been one of Penang’s top three source markets. Given the strength of the Singapore dollar, visitors from Singapore typically have strong spending power, and in light of this, Singaporean visitors occupy an important position both in terms of arrival numbers and spending power. “Therefore, Batik Air’s launch of the direct Singapore to Penang route will give travellers from Singapore another direct option to Penang, greatly facilitating their travel for tourism, investment and leisure, and further driving Penang’s tourism economy,” he said in a statement yesterday. Meanwhile, Wong also welcomed the move by HK Express to increase the frequency of its Hong Kong to Penang route from one flight daily to two flights daily, beginning Oct 26. He said that both Singapore and Hong Kong are leading global aviation hubs, with Hong Kong International Airport ranked 9th in the world for total passenger traffic and Singapore Changi Airport ranked 15th for international passenger traffic, based on 2024 data from Airports Council International. With greater connectivity from these key hubs, Wong said Penang stands to benefit from increased international exposure and the enhanced routes not only facilitate easier access for visitors from Hong Kong and Singapore, but also improve global connectivity to Penang via these strategic transit points.

trust scores. Branding and digital engagement emerged as the strongest area, with 16 platforms scoring highly and eight achieving full marks. This highlights the growing emphasis on user communication and digital presence. Conversely, cybersecurity was identified as a critical weakness; over half of the platforms demonstrated significant vulnerabilities with inadequate risk management measures. While many platforms showed solid business sustainability and value creation, there was noticeable inconsistency in governance and strategic alignment among those with lower maturity scores. Importantly, the assessment found a positive correlation between operational maturity and trust, confirming that platforms with robust management practices garner higher stakeholder confidence. On-demand workforce platforms consistently outperformed others in both maturity and trust, reflecting effective user provider interactions. Interestingly, 63% of platforms had trust scores exceeding their maturity levels, indicating that many have built strong reputations that precede full operational sophistication, while others need to leverage their internal strengths to build greater user trust. The National Sharing Economy Platform Assessment provides a comprehensive tool that empowers Malaysia’s sharing economy platforms to make informed decisions and enhance competitiveness.

o MDEC and Deloitte collaborate to introduce National Sharing Economy Platform Assessment Framework

PETALING JAYA: Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), in collaboration with Deloitte, has developed the National Sharing Economy Platform Assessment Framework to elevate the maturity and digital trust worthiness of sharing economy platforms, fostering a secure, transparent, and inclusive ecosystem. The framework also aligns closely with the Malaysia Digital national strategic initiative and the broader Madani economic aspirations, providing a structured approach to assessing and enhancing platform operations. This framework is also to address some challenges that is facing the nation and the economy. In Malaysia, the digital economy is advancing rapidly, contributing 23.5% to the nation’s gross domestic product in 2024 and is on track to reach 25.5% by the end of 2025. Central to this growth is the sharing economy, which has seen remarkable expansion with over 246 active platforms enabling more than 1.6 million gig workers in Malaysia to earn additional income through services such as e hailing, home-sharing, and freelance task outsourcing. Inflation increases 1.3% in August PETALING JAYA: Malaysia’s inflation increased 1.3% in August with the index points standing at 134.9 as against 133.2 in the same month of the previous year, said Department of Statistics, Malaysia (DoSM). The jump was driven by a higher increase in the group of Insurance & Financial Services, 5.6% (July 2025: 5.5%); Personal Care, Social Protection & Miscellaneous Goods & Services, 4.0% (July 2025: 3.9%); Restaurant & Accommodation Services, 3.5% (July 2025: 3.1%); Education, 2.4% (July 2025: 2.2%); Food & Beverages, 2.0% (July 2025: 1.9%); Recreation, Sport & Culture, 0.9% (July 2025: 0.8%) and Furnishings, Household Equipment & Routine House hold Maintenance groups, 0.2% (July 2025: 0.1%). Meanwhile, Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels, 1.2% (July 2025: 1.3%); Health, 1.1% (July 2025: 1.2%); Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco, 0.4% (July 2025: 0.6%) and Transport, 0.2% (July 2025: 0.4%) showed slower increases as compared to July 2025. Additionally, Information & Communication and Clothing & Footwear remained at negative territory, registering negative 5.6% and negative 0.1% respectively. Chief Statistician Malaysia Datuk Seri Dr Mohd Uzir Mahidin said that 59.7% of items (342 out of 573) recorded price increases. Nonetheless, out of this total, 332 items (97.1%) registered an increase of less than or equal to 10%, while only 10 items recorded increases of more than 10% in August. The remaining 185 items (32.3%), showed a decline and 46 items remained un changed. The Food & Beverages group which contributes 29.8% of the total CPI weight, increased at 2% in August compared to 1.9% in the preceding month. Inflation for food away from home, remained at 4.3%, as recorded in the previous month. Meanwhile, food at home decreased to negative 0.1% in August (July: -0.3%). Inflation for the Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuels group increased at a slower rate of 1.2% compared to 1.3% in the previous month.

The cumulative sharing economy market size in Malaysia is estimated to reach RM18.8 billion between 2016 and 2025, underscoring its increasing significance in the nation’s digital landscape. Despite the sector’s dynamism, challenges persist. Incidents of data leakage, privacy breaches, scams, and fraudulent activities have raised concerns among users and regulators alike. The absence of a comprehensive platform assessment framework has resulted in inconsistent governance and security practices, contributing to gaps in consumer trust and exposing vulnerabilities in data protection. These issues threaten to stall the momentum of Malaysia’s sharing economy if left unaddressed. As the enabler and architect of the nation’s digital ecosystem strategy, MDEC recognised the pivotal need for a comprehensive assessment framework that would not only address these challenges but position Malaysia as the regional leader in sharing economy governance. In its pilot phase, the programme engaged a diverse range of sharing economy platforms, alongside emerging local startups. The pilot revealed a broad spectrum of maturity levels and