Foreign Exchange Policy

Borrowing in Malaysia

Borrowing in foreign currency
A non-resident is free to obtain foreign currency (FC) borrowing from any licensed onshore bank for use in or outside Malaysia.

A non-resident is free to issue FC-denominated sukuk/bonds in Malaysia for use in or outside Malaysia.

Borrowing in ringgit
A non-resident other than financial institution is free to borrow in ringgit:

1. Any amount from any resident (including a licensed onshore bank) to finance or refinance real sector activities in Malaysia.
2. Any amount from immediate family members for any purpose;
3. Any amount from employer in Malaysia under the employment terms and conditions for use in Malaysia;
4. Any amount of margin financing from -
   • resident stock-broking corporation; or
   • licensed onshore bank with stockbroking license,

   to purchase securities or financial instruments traded on Bursa Malaysia; or

5. Up to attained cash surrender value of any life insurance policy or family takaful certificate purchased from licensed insurer or a licensed takaful operator.

A non-resident custodian bank, stock broking corporation, trust bank or international central securities depository acting on behalf of non-resident investor or a non-resident investor purchasing shares or ringgit instrument traded on Bursa Malaysia or RENTAS for its own account is allowed to obtain overdraft facilities (maximum tenure of 2 business days) from licensed onshore banks solely for the purpose of mitigating settlement failure for ringgit securities and instruments due to inadvertent delay of payment by the non-resident.

Further Information

1. Notice 2 – Borrowing, Lending and Guarantee [PDF]
2. Notice 5 – Securities and Financial Instruments [PDF]
3. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) [PDF]

Application Submission

Resident must apply before undertaking transactions other than stated above through online submission portal. Relevant application forms and user guides are listed below for reference. Please do not submit hardcopy application.