KUALA LUMPUR, April 7, 2026 — The Minister of Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives (KUSKOP), Steven Sim Chee Keong, recently met with 16 top executives from the Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM), led by Chairman of the Association of Banks in Malaysia (ABM) Dato’ Sri Khairussaleh Ramli, to discuss strengthening cooperation between the banking sector and the government in support of Malaysian small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
The engagement focused on enhancing coordination to help SMEs navigate ongoing global uncertainties and rising energy costs. During the session, Steven Sim presented a 10-point action plan aimed at boosting collaboration between KUSKOP and financial institutions:
- Prioritising basic business support by ensuring continuous access to working capital, with 43% of SME loans dedicated to operational needs.
- Implementing more inclusive and practical loan assessment criteria to improve SME access to financing.
- Accelerating loan processing and approval times to provide faster support to businesses.
- Increasing repayment flexibility through restructuring, rescheduling, or case-by-case moratoriums during periods of uncertainty.
- Strengthening partnerships between commercial banks, KUSKOP, and Development Financial Institutions (DFIs) through integrated financing to optimise resources and impact.
- Applying a “no wrong door” policy to refer SMEs to suitable financial products or services in other institutions if unavailable in the originating bank.
- Expanding capacity-building programmes to strengthen SME resilience and capabilities.
- Promoting and implementing SME-focused financial products throughout the year.
- Collaborating with SME Corp. Malaysia to enhance the value and recognition of SME accreditation.
- Working with KUSKOP under the PowerUp10k initiative to further scale Malaysian businesses.
Steven Sim expressed appreciation for the positive response from the 12 participating banks, emphasising the importance of an ecosystem-wide approach to support SMEs.
He highlighted that continuous government-bank collaboration is crucial for maintaining resilient, competitive, and growth-ready Malaysian businesses despite global challenges.
The meeting was attended by prominent industry leaders, including Tan Sri Dato’ Sri Dr Tay Ah Lek, Managing Director and CEO of Public Bank, and Dato’ Mohd Rashid bin Mohamad, Group Managing Director and CEO of RHB Bank.
Senior management representatives from Maybank, AmBank, Bangkok Bank, Bank of America Malaysia, CIMB Bank, Hong Leong Islamic Bank, OCBC Malaysia, Public Bank, RHB Bank, UOB Malaysia, Standard Chartered Saddiq Berhad, and Boost Bank Berhad were also present, along with KUSKOP-affiliated agencies including Bank Rakyat, SME Bank, TEKUN Nasional, and SME Corp. Malaysia.
The engagement was held at the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers (AICB) in Kuala Lumpur.
