Last Monday, the BMCC together with the Asian Institute of Chartered Bankers (AICB) hosted an Exclusive Dialogue & Luncheon with the Lord Mayor of the City of London, Alderman Peter Estlin. The event, held at Sasana Kijang, Bank Negara Malaysia was aimed at promoting the diverse strengths, resiliences and opportunities of the City of London with attendees comprising of BMCC and AICB members.
In his keynote address themed “Beyond Brexit: The Future of the City of London and its Impact on Financial Markets” the Lord Mayor delivered several salient messages about the opportunities in innovation and the importance of collaborating rather than competing; pertaining to the open market of London and its relation with investing nations such as Malaysia.
“Whilst the fundamentals of London as a major financial centre remain strong, we’re also continuing to attract venture capital with sovereign wealth [and] pension funds. Last year there was more capital coming into the UK than all of Europe put together,” remarked The Lord Mayor. Even against the backdrop of Brexit, he attributed this ongoing vibrancy to the regulators involved with developing the marketplace as well as the rise of a business incubation culture resulting from innovative environments. Several growing sectors identified in contributing to this were in energy, health & life sciences, media and creative industries. “London is very much open. Not only are we maintaining the strength of our traditional fundamental businesses, but we also have the huge scale of innovation coming from more modern digital industries; particularly in FinTech,” he affirmed.
On the opportunities in Malaysia, Mr. Estlin cited Green Finance and Sustainable Financing as sectors of interest for UK investors. “One of the shifts we have seen in London through the asset management world is increasing recognition in the importance of Environmental Social and Governance (ESG). The closer you look at that, the more you see that as a construct closely aligned to Islamic Finance.”
Professor Dr Graham Kendall, Provost & CEO of the University of Nottingham Malaysia and BMCC Board Member chaired and moderated the ensuing question and answer session before lunch was served. The BMCC thanks co-organisers AICB for their partnership, and to the Department for International Trade for making the afternoon a success.
