ASEAN Central Bank Agrees On Financial Resilience And Stability In The Region

Deputy Governor of BI Filianingsih Hendarta. (Photo: Doc. ANTARA)

JAKARTA - Deputy for the Central Bank of ASEAN countries is committed to strengthening financial stability and resilience and growth in the region. This was the case that surfaced at the ASEAN 26th Senior Level Committee (SLC) meeting in Jakarta some time ago.

It was stated that as an effort to strengthen this stability, Bank Indonesia (BI) initiated the formation of the ASEAN LCT Framework Task Force and the preparation of the High Level Principles (HLP) on Local Currency Transactions (LCT) Framework.

The HLP will later serve as a guideline for ASEAN countries in promoting the use of local currency.

BI Deputy Governor Filianingsih Hendarta said the SLC meeting discussed regional financial pillars and strategies to increase regional financial resilience.

"The SLC is expected to be an important forum for central banks in the Region to encourage dialogue, cooperation and strengthen solidarity between ASEAN countries," he said in a written statement on Thursday, August 3.

Filianingsih explained that the central bank of ASEAN member countries discussed global and regional economic developments with ASEAN Macroeconomic and Research Office and Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ) guidelines.

"This discussion is expected to strengthen the understanding of ASEAN member countries regarding the global financial landscape, especially in the practice of the green financial transition in ASEAN," he said.

Filianingsih added that participants are also fully committed to encouraging the green financial transition and sustainable financial steps. This is reflected in reports of sustainable financial initiatives that have been carried out by ASEAN member countries by SLC Task Force on Sustainable Finance.

"The important issue that was also raised in the meeting was cybersecurity. Indonesia had the opportunity to become the coordinator of the Cybersecurity Resilience and Information Sharing Platform (CRISP). CRIP explained the latest activities and developments of the forum aimed at strengthening cybersecurity and data sharing platforms between ASEAN countries," he said.

Meanwhile, the meeting continued with reports from all Working Committees (WC) which underscore ASEAN's efforts to encourage a stronger and more connected financial ecosystem amidst dynamic economic conditions.

"In the midst of these dynamics, the Deputy for ASEAN Central Bank has agreed at the SLC level that the ASEAN Working Committee mandate needs to be reviewed in the face of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) after 2025," he said.