T

he Financial Services Authority (OJK) has signed an agreement with the government of the state of Victoria and a financial center in Australia as part of the efforts to help local financial services expand their businesses there.

The agreement with the financial center aims to help OJK staffers improve their capacity by learning from the Australian institution.

OJK Institute head Toto Zurianto signed the memorandum of understanding on Friday, representing the financial regulator. Victoria was represented by Richard Bolt, state secretary of economic development, jobs, transport and resources department.

Meanwhile, the dean of Monash University'€™s Business and Economics Faculty Colm Kearney represented the Australian Center for Financial Studies (ACFS), an independent research center on the financial services industry, which is affiliated to Monash University and Monash Business School.

OJK chairman Muliaman D. Hadad, who witnessed the signing along with Victoria'€™s State Premier Daniel Andrews, said the agreement with Monash University was made to enhance the capacity and expertise of OJK employees in supervising and regulating Indonesia'€™s financial services industry.

'€œWe also hope that the partnership opens doors for future leaders of Indonesia'€™s financial services industry to increase their capacity,'€ he said in a statement.

As for the deal with the Victoria administration, Muliaman said both parties had agreed to work together on the development of access to financial services for rural areas, financial technology as well as international relations and communication.

He said both parties were also expected to discuss making it easier for Indonesian financial services firms to do business in Victoria.

The agreement would also enable both parties to conduct joint studies and exchange information as well as providing technical support and scholarships, he added.

OJK international and institutional affairs director Triyono said recently the financial regulator had also started discussions with Thailand'€™s banking and financial services industry authority on a future bilateral deal ahead of the ASEAN Economic Community'€™s (AEC) liberalization of banking and financial services in 2020.

Triyono said the discussions with Thailand were similar to lengthy talks between the OJK and Malaysia'€™s banking authority, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) that covered issues on easing restrictions for Indonesian banks operating in Malaysia.

However, he said discussion with Thailand would probably take less time as Thailand'€™s banking authority was only clarifying possible impacts of the AEC liberalization on the future legality of Bangkok Bank, which is currently the only Thai bank operating in Indonesia under the status of '€œforeign branch'€.

He said the OJK did not know whether there would be any Indonesian bank wishing to enter Thailand in the future or vice versa, but insisted that the agency would always uphold principals of reciprocity in any bilateral talk and agreement.

As for the deal with Malaysia, he added that the OJK would sign the bilateral agreement with BNM in April after both parties had completed their lengthy negotiations on future treatment of Indonesian banks as equals with Malaysia'€™s local banks, amid complaints of difficulties operating fully in the neighboring country.

The AEC'€™s ASEAN Banking Integration Framework (ABIF) guidelines will enable '€œindigenous'€ banks '€” based in ASEAN countries and owned by ASEAN citizens '€” that acquire the status of Qualified ASEAN Bank (QAB) to operate in the region and enjoy equal treatment with local banks.