In a recent speech, Tetangco said the central bank would initiate formal discussions with the Bank of Thailand and Indonesia’s Otoritas Jasa Keuangan with the end goal of signing agreements under the Asean Banking Integration Framework (Abif). Last week, top BSP officials met with their counterparts from the Bank of Thailand in the Thai city of Chiang Mai for bilateral discussions. In March, the BSP and Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) also agreed to allow three QABs from each country to operate under the Abif. The BSP defined QABs as “strong and well-managed banks, headquartered in Asean and majority owned by Asean nationals”. According to the Asean website, “Abif recognises that some countries are more ready than others to further open up their banking sector … Hence, the current focus is on pursuing bilateral reciprocal arrangements”.

Source: The Nation Bangkok November 25, 2016 10:41 UTC