CIMB to set up regional research institute

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KUCHING: Financial services group CIMB Group Holdings Bhd (CIMB) has announced that it plans to set up a research institute dedicated towards pro­moting Asean integration.In a release yesterday, it was stated that CIMB Asean Research Institute (CARI) will be an independent corporate entity focused primarily on the region’s economic and social inte­gration. Additionally, the institute’s proposed setup will be finalised subject to the approval of Bank Negara Malaysia.

The group’s chief executive officer Datuk Seri Nazir Tun Razak said, “CARI will promote Asean integration by providing thought leadership and specific views on key issues and action plans. CIMB has aligned its future to that of Asean, therefore, although CARI will be run indepen­dently, our sponsorship for the institute is entirely consistent with our corporate agenda.

“There’s currently insuffi-cient critical mass support for Asean integration and the efforts of the region’s secretariat, as governments need to be supplemented by the private sector. Today, the combined Asean econo-mies make-up Asia’s third largest economy but ful­filling its true potential requires greater coordina-tion, commitment and ur­gency on the part of all stakeholders. We are step­ping forwards with CARI to help further catalyse this important agenda.”

In addition, Nazir explained that CARI also aimed at taking a pragmatic and problem-solving approach to arrive at strong positions on key areas such as free trade areas (FTAs), non-trade barriers, finan­cial markets integration and sectorial rules and regula­tions. At the same time, the institute would promote networking among business leaders in the region.

Funded and incorporated as a wholly owned subsi­diary of CIMB, CARI will be based in Jakarta, with its proposed gover­nance via a board of governors (BOG) that will oversee the institute’s overall direction and finances, as well as a board of advisors (BOA) to set strategic direction and give intellectual oversight to its research.

These boards will comprise several prominent Asean figures including Indonesian Bank Restruc­turing Agency’s (IBRA) first chairman, Glenn Yusuf, and former Malaysian and Hong Kong central banker, Datuk Seri Panglima Andrew Sheng.

Within CARI’s manage­ment profile, prominent management consultant and academic, John Pang, will be appointed as its chief executive officer of CARI. Currently, Pang is a senior visiting fellow at the Rajarat­nam School of International Studies in Singapore. He has an interdisciplinary academic background in philosophy of economics, political philo­sophy and the anthropology of religion, with post-graduate work at London School of Economics and Stanford University.