Malaysia is proposing to create a mega Islamic bank and it is looking to accomplish this through a series of mergers and acquisitions as part of its effort to be in the forefront of the Islamic banking world. News reports suggested talks have been initiated among several Islamic banking and financial institutions in Kuala Lumpur. The proposed bank could also lead to an operational expenditure rationalization and make use of fintech and internet, the reports suggested. Specifically, the reports said the Malaysia Building Society (MBSB) is in talks for a possible merger or take-over bid by a banking institution. Also, Bank Rakyat is reported to be in a take-over bid by Permodalan Nasional. MBSB, which turned 60 last year, offers ‘Islamic’ based financial services and it would be appropriate for it to merge with another ‘Islamic’ based financial institution, the reports said. The country’s central bank Bank Negara Malaysia has reported approved the merger talks.
