Bank Negara Malaysia wishes to announce the increase in the Statutory Reserve Requirement (SRR) Ratio from 2.00% to 3.00%, effective from 16 May 2011. 

The decision to raise the SRR is undertaken as a pre-emptive measure to manage the significant build-up of liquidity, which may result in financial imbalances and create risks to financial stability. 

The SRR is an instrument to manage liquidity and is not a signal on the stance of monetary policy. The Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) is the sole indicator used to signal the stance of monetary policy, and is announced through the Monetary Policy Statement released after each Monetary Policy Committee meeting.