Malaysia Pulse delivers breaking news, politics, business, sports and lifestyle coverage from Malaysia and Southeast Asia — trusted, timely and independent.
Australia's government is implementing stricter consumer protections for retirement funds following the collapse of Shield and First Guardian, which wiped out A$1.1 billion in savings for around 11,000 Australians.
As sweeping U.S. crypto legislation falters, President Trump's regulators are moving to establish industry rules through agencies like the SEC and CFTC, though experts warn that administrative action cannot provide the permanence that congressional legislation would offer.
Malaysia's government is exploring the establishment of a multi-agency task force to coordinate investigations into alleged misconduct at Tabung Haji, according to Finance Minister II Datuk Seri Amir Hamzah Azizan.
The government has referred the Tabung Haji RCI report to police, MACC, Bank Negara, and the tax authority for full investigation. The move signals serious concerns over governance lapses at the Islamic pilgrimage savings institution.
The Malaysian government has committed to comprehensive reforms of Tabung Haji, including Securities Commission regulatory oversight and legislative amendments to prevent a recurrence of the financial crisis that nearly cost the state RM74.5 billion.
The Malaysian government plans to amend the Tabung Haji Act 1995 to strengthen financial reporting and governance, implementing recommendations from a Royal Commission of Inquiry into the Islamic pilgrimage fund's operations between 2014 and 2020.
Bank Negara Malaysia issued five warnings to Tabung Haji over widening asset-liability gaps, which were ignored by leadership, according to Minister Zulkifli Hasan. An RCI report later confirmed financial manipulation.
The US Senate is advancing the Clarity Act, landmark cryptocurrency legislation that would establish federal regulatory standards. The move requires Democratic support and faces scrutiny over government officials' crypto holdings.
Malaysia's leaders emphasise that maintaining public trust in managing assets requires more than legal frameworks—it demands personal integrity rooted in faith and Islamic principles protecting the collective welfare.
Liechtenstein's government is investigating a cyberattack on its confidential registry of beneficial owners involving approximately 31,000 entities. The breach, discovered last week, exposed names and residencies but not financial details.
MNRB Holdings has agreed to sell its entire stakes in Takaful Ikhlas Family and Takaful Ikhlas General to Bank Rakyat for RM1.64 billion, marking a strategic shift toward core reinsurance operations.
Malaysia's Royal Commission of Inquiry into Tabung Haji has recommended forensic audits of 14 past investments that resulted in substantial asset write-downs, raising concerns about governance and financial stability.
Former Bank Negara Malaysia deputy governor Datuk Ooi Sang Kuang has called for the central bank's supervisory framework to become more collaborative with the financial industry, using regulatory sandboxes to nurture innovative sectors while managing emerging risks.
Bank Negara Malaysia will enforce a new Performance Measurement Framework for development banks from July 2027, evaluating institutions on development mandate achievement, sectoral impact, additionality versus commercial financing, and governance standards.
The White House has suspended a teleprompter operator who has served President Trump since 2016, following claims he used confidential information about speeches to place profitable bets on a prediction platform.
The Dutch central bank has fined ABN AMRO Bank 8.5 million euros for serious shortcomings in its anti-money laundering controls, citing inadequate monitoring of high-risk customers between September 2023 and September 2024.