Malaysia is relatively insulated and will be resilient in facing the current credit crisis brought on by the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the United States, CIMB Group chief executive Nazir Tun Razak said here on Thursday.
"We are not really that active in the global market. None of our banks or corporates are involved in that matter," he said after launching CIMB Islamic Max Invest Save PSSIA-I, an investment cum saving product.
He said this when asked on whether the crisis in the U.S. would affect Malaysia's bond and Sukuk issuances, the national news agency Bernama reported.
CIMB is Malaysia's second largest financial services provider and one of Southeast Asia's leading universal banking groups.
Stock markets around the globe plunged early this week as Wall Street institutions such as Merril Lynch and Lehman Brothers went into serious financial difficulties owing to the worsening housing credit crisis.
Markets fell further after the U.S. government's 85 billion U.S. dollars bailout of insurer American International Group failed to calm investors. Before that, markets were already battered by news of investment bank, Lehman Brothers, filing for bankruptcy, the largest in US corporate history and Bank of America's 50 billion U.S. dollars takeover of rival Merrill Lynch & Co.
On the breaking of Lehman Brothers, Nazir contended that short sellers could have contributed.
Nazir also recalled former Prime Minister and Finance Minister Mahathir Mohamad's "genius" moves during the crisis in 1998 which eventually helped Malaysia pass through the financial turbulence.
His solutions, which had been initially thought as "mad" and globally unacceptable, eventually helped the country, he said.
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