Please name and shame

IN the high world of finance, the two qualities that overwhelm individuals are integrity and pride.

Nobody working for any financial institution or regulatory body over-seeing financial institutions would want to walk away with their heads down.

They would never be hired again in the industry, where trust and integrity are important. So, it is rare for information on misdeeds in the financial sector to be made public. Malaysia has seen so many financial fraud cases and shenanigans. Banks have lost hundreds of millions. In the aftermath of the 1998 financial crisis, banks were forced to consolidate for a few reasons.

Apart from seeing the need to have larger capitalised banks, the regulators also saw the urgency to ensure that each and every one of the financial institutions were well run by executives with the highest integrity. So, the lesser number of banks made it easier to monitor the highly important industry.

Now, the central bank will come up with another level of punitive measures to push for a higher level of integrity among bankers. Bank Negara will name and shame those who fail to comply with banking rules and regulations. It is a measure that will take effect from Jan 1 next year. Naming and shaming is something that has had an impact on the corporate world.

The Securities Commission in its website puts up names of those who have paid a fine to settle cases involving insider trading on a non-prejudice basis. Several large tycoons have been named on the list and the amount they have paid run into the millions. It has had an impact because insider trading is something most corporate figures would stay away from.

The action by Bank Negara to name and shame should have an impact on the financial industry and its intermediaries.