Malaysian and Chinese credit rating agencies to strengthen cross-border ties
The partnership aims to enhance transparency, promote best practices in credit assessment and foster joint research and development of analytical tools, as well as environmental, social and governance (ESG) and green finance methodologies.
It also opens the door for joint conferences, knowledge sharing and closer cooperation on credit assessments of Chinese enterprises in Malaysia, along with Malaysian entities in China and Hong Kong.
The collaboration sets the foundation for shared networks, mutual market access and joint product development between the two institutions.
It also aims to reduce the informational gap between national rating practices, encourage investor confidence and enhance global recognition of regional credit rating standards.
A joint working group will be formed to implement the cooperation framework, identify priority initiatives and develop joint programmes.
These include macroeconomic and sectoral research, credit assessment innovations and collaborative engagements in the Islamic capital market, as well as sustainability-linked instruments.
MARC chief executive officer Arshad Mohamed Ismail said the partnership represents a revolution, broadening its international presence and aligning with global trends in sustainable finance.
It reflects the ambition to position MARC as a connector between Asean and key financial markets such as China.
"We believe credit rating agencies can play a more proactive role in supporting capital formation and risk transparency across borders.
"Through this collaboration, we aim to co-create methodologies that are locally grounded yet globally relevant, particularly in areas such as Islamic and sustainable finance and ESG," he said in a statement.
Arshad added that MARC looks forward to cultivating long-term knowledge exchange, research innovation and joint thought leadership that benefit the broader financial ecosystem.
CCXI CEO Dr Yue Zhigang said the collaboration could expands the firm's presence and relevance within the Asean region.
"In today's increasingly interconnected financial markets, closer cooperation between rating agencies is essential.
"It is not only for knowledge sharing, but also for ensuring consistent credit benchmarks that investors can trust," he added.
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