KUALA LUMPUR: Bursa Malaysia Bhd is launching 'Invest Bursa, Invest in You' campaign this month to encourage Malaysians to invest in the capital market and grow the value of their savings for their future.
The Exchange said today data collected from regional central banks and financial authorities revealed that Malaysia has the highest level of fixed deposits (FD) among regional peers.
“There is an opportunity lost here when Malaysians keep most of their savings in fixed deposit accounts. As part of prudent asset allocation, it is advisable to diversify your financial or asset portfolio.
“The capital market is not only a viable channel to do this, but also provides an opportunity to grow the value of those savings in a regulated environment,” said Bursa Malaysia chief executive officer Datuk Seri Tajuddin Atan.
As at June 2018, Bank Negara (BNM) reported that FD accounts in Malaysia amounted to US$209 billion (RM866.83 billion) compared to US$166 billion (RM688.49 billion) in Singapore, US$156 billion (RM647.01 billion) in Thailand and US$148 billion (RM613.83 billion) in Indonesia.
The central bank said the data implies that most of Malaysians’ savings are locked away in FDs, noting that interest rates for FDs in Malaysia hover around 3.35 per cent for 12 months.
Tajuddin added the capital market provides a broad range of investment opportunities that can match various investment and risk appetites.
“There are different stock counters and products offering different rates of possible risks and returns, which can translate into good value growth. For instance, the financial sector, representing the banking stocks, grew 6.9 per cent over the last eight months,” he said.
He also added that participation of retail investors, or individual investors, in the Malaysian capital market is currently at 22 per cent.
As at July 31, 2018, 1.9 million individual central depository system (CDS) accounts were registered with Bursa Malaysia.
“Relative to the country’s population, particularly considering the growing millennial demography, there is definitely room to grow retail participation in the capital market.
“A fundamental barrier we need to unlock is the general perception towards share market investing,” said Tajuddin.
Surveys conducted by Bursa Malaysia showed Malaysians tend to associate investing in the share market with being complicated and high-risk as well as needing a high starting capital to begin investing.
“This nationwide campaign augments Bursa Malaysia’s commitment towards enhancing financial literacy among Malaysians. Through a series of programmes, we will focus on dispelling misperceptions towards investing in the capital market, and making it easier for Malaysians to start their investment journey with a view towards building stronger financial independence.
“Importantly, we also want to keep Malaysians informed about regulated investment avenues to stay away from illegal get-rich-quick schemes,” said Tajuddin.
The 'Invest Bursa, Invest in You' campaign which will run throughout 2019, is targeted at Malaysians from all walks of life and aimed to increase retail participation in the capital market through widespread education and knowledge programmes, as well as initiatives to attract and ease initial entry into the capital market.
The first initiative under this campaign is the Nationwide Share Ownership promotion, where Bursa Malaysia will partner with participating brokers to provide dedicated services to Malaysians who wish to sign up for a CDS account.
Bursa Malaysia said throughout the promotion, Malaysians can fill in the lead form available on
www.bursamarketplace.com and choose a preferred broker, who will take the initiative to establish a first point of contact within three days before arranging to meet up within a week to facilitate the process.
“Through this initiative, we hope to make the entire process of becoming an investor in the stock market less daunting for Malaysians. Our participating brokers are committed to making this step easier for interested individuals.
“We are looking forward to announcing more programmes and promotions under this campaign, creating more opportunities for our fellow Malaysians to grow the value of their savings,” said Bursa Malaysia chief commercial officer Selvarany Rasiah.