Strategic Communication Initiatives 2025

In 2025, the SC maintained a high level of media engagement, prioritising technical authority and thought leadership across key regulatory and developmental themes. Media efforts centred on delivering technical clarity, particularly in the areas of sustainability, MSME growth and ASEAN capital market integration. As a result, the SC generated 3,075 news clippings by year end.

Key media activities include:

95 media releases issued announcing regulatory and market development updates, enforcement actions and strategic milestones.
16 media engagements comprising technical and background briefings as well as visits to media houses were held to ensure accurate reporting on complex regulatory topics while maintaining good rapport.
15 media interviews were conducted involving various leadership figures.
Nine Op-eds published in major outlets primarily focused on sustainability and the ASEAN capital markets.

ASEAN Capital Markets Forum Chairmanship

As Chair of the ACMF, the SC directed its communication towards strengthening regional collaboration, corporate governance and sustainable development. Media engagement related to ACMF initiatives generated over 1,000 articles across local and international platforms, balancing policy messaging with community-centred narratives to reflect the diversity of the ASEAN capital market ecosystem.

Regional Leadership and Policy Direction

Media coverage highlighted Malaysia’s leadership role within ASEAN through flagship events such as the ASEAN Investment Conference and the ACMF International Conference. A key milestone was the introduction of the ACMF Action Plan 2026-2030, which outlined a collective path forward for the region. Media reporting on the plan, supported by the presence of Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan, highlighted the strategic priorities of sustainability, financial inclusion and digital transformation, illustrating the steps being taken to strengthen ASEAN as an investment hub.

Advancing Corporate Governance Standards

Corporate governance remained a prominent theme, with the ASEAN Corporate Governance Conference and Awards (CGCA) garnering the highest media coverage for the year. Reporting highlighted the achievements of public-listed companies across the region, particularly in Indonesia, reinforcing ASEAN’s shared commitment to stronger governance standards and the SC’s ongoing reform agenda.

Talent Development and Community Engagement

The SC also prioritised talent development and public engagement. Media coverage of the ASEAN Investment Challenge highlighted its expansion to include the Philippines and Malaysia’s continued success, with local students securing top honours for the third consecutive year. These efforts, supported by industry partners such as CGS International, reinforced the SC’s commitment to building future-ready, financially literate investors.

Additional initiatives, including the Young Regulators Development Programme, Batik Lestari Festival, investED for Returning Women and COFAR Challenge, broadened engagement across youth, professionals and communities. Digital-first content amplified messages on climate adaptation, culture and sustainability, extending reach beyond traditional policy audiences.

The SC also coordinated targeted media interviews and engagements to strengthen public awareness of investment scams and reinforce investor education efforts.

Media Outreach and Digital Presence

The SC maintained consistent engagement with international, regional and local media, complemented by an active digital presence. More than 250 social media posts related to ACMF initiatives were published across LinkedIn, TikTok and Instagram generated over 112,000 views and nearly 120,000 engagements, supporting wider dissemination of key messages.

Collectively, these efforts underscored the SC’s execution of its communications mandate in 2025, supporting its role as ACMF Chair and advancing a resilient, inclusive and forward-looking capital market.

Mitigating Systemic Risks And Promoting Financial Stability

Enhanced Risk Governance Framework

In 2021, the SC-wide risk governance framework was enhanced as part of an overall initiative to have an effective integrated and predictive risk surveillance to maintain regulatory agility.

The structured risk governance framework integrated the wider spectrum of risks such as technology, cyber and conduct risk at the SC’s Systemic Risk Oversight Committee (SROC) and Accounting, Market and Corporate Surveillance Committee (ACMS).

Intensified surveillance

The SC continued to intensify its surveillance of systemic risk to maintain market resilience and stability. Regular SROC engagements were held to deliberate concerns emanating from various segments across the capital market. Domestic equity and bond market, foreign fund flows and trade participation continued to be monitored closely for potential stress points.

In addition, measures and economic stimulus packages introduced by the government to weather the impact of COVID-19, market trading conduct and the financial position of listed companies were among the focus areas for discussion.

Thematic assessments

The SC also conducted thematic assessments covering investors’ fund flows, the position of firms, and policy decisions to ascertain the possible impact on the capital market. In 2021, the SC reviewed and enhanced its crisis indicators on potential emerging risks in the
capital market.

The enhanced crisis indicators provided a reference point for escalation to SROC when the identified indicators and triggers materialised and ensured prompt response to manage and prevent any issues of concern that might lead to a systemic crisis.

Joint regulatory discussions

In 2021, the SC conducted frequent joint regulatory discussions with other authorities such as Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) and Labuan Financial Services Authority (Labuan FSA) to identify systemic risk concern areas within the financial and capital markets in Malaysia.

Monitoring of various components of the capital market

The SC continued its efforts to undertake a methodological and integrated approach to ensure any potential systemic risk was being monitored, mitigated, or managed. Figure 1 highlights the findings from the following risk assessments on the various components of the capital market.