Malaysia is in the centre of Southeast Asia and sits on the South China Sea. The country starts with Peninsular Malaysia (West Malaysia) and extends to another region, Sabah and Sarawak (East Malaysia), located on the island of Borneo. Malaysia is approximately 330,000 square km, 40% of which constitutes Peninsular Malaysia. Forty-five international airlines, apart from its main carrier Malaysian Airlines System Berhad ("MAS"), provide direct services to Malaysia.
History and Government
Malaysia is an independent federation comprising 13 states and the federal territories of Kuala Lumpur (which is also the capital city), Putrajaya and Labuan (designated as an offshore financial centre). The country has a centralised system of government. It has a Westminster model of Parliamentary Democracy consisting of the King, the House of Representatives and the Senate. There are 180 Members of Parliament (MPs) in the House of Representatives, with each member representing a geographical constituency. MPs are elected at a general election every five years or through a by-election. The King and the State Legislatures appoint the 68 members of the Senate.
Legal System
Malaysia's predominant system of law is the common law system based on the British system of law. The other principal systems of law, the Islamic law system is predominantly limited to Muslims.
International Financial Services Centre
Malaysia's common law heritage means that companies and trusts are accepted entities for business within a sophisticated economy. Bank Negara Malaysia - the Central Bank of Malaysia - announced on 16 November 2005 that the construction of the Financial Services Resource Centre (FSRC) had commenced with effect 15 November 2005. It represents Malaysia's investment in a knowledge centre with learning and research facilities to support the development of a high performance culture for the banking and financial sector. The FSRC will house the international Islamic Financial Services Board (IFSB) and the regional South-East Asian Central Bank Research and Training Centre (SEACEN). It is part of Malaysia's effort to support global development of Islamic finance. The SEACEN Research and Training Centre, represents the nation's commitment to training in areas including central banking, banking supervision, Islamic finance, executive learning as well as research and development in the regional and international arena. Malaysia is host to both these international and regional institutions. The opportunities for Islamic finance in Malaysia include financial products and services available with fiscal and regulatory incentives through the Malaysian Federal Territory of Labuan.
Malaysia is a market-oriented economy providing infrastructural facilities comparable, if not better, than its neighboring countries. Government has endeavored to formulate policies favorable to creating a well developed economic environment and to date, has achieved a sound and sophisticated financial and banking sector making Malaysia a highly competitive manufacturing and export base.
With adoption and implementation of its many policies, Malaysia is endeavoring to accelerate productivity and efficiencies mainly through private sector initiatives, develop keys areas of information technology and remove impediments to free market participation with the ultimate stated objective of enabling Malaysia to become a fully developed nation by year 2020.
Portcullis TrustNet (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd is situated in Kuala Lumpur and is able to assist clients who wish to take advantage of these opportunities.
