ASEAN banking council boosts regional financial cooperation

The 53rd ASEAN Banking Council Meeting convened in Yangon, Myanmar on 21 November, gathering more than 150 senior banking executives from the region to advance cross-border payment standards, anti-scam coordination, and regional banking education initiatives.

Hosted by the Myanmar Banks Association, the meeting approved new proposals from the Council’s three standing committees, including a unified dispute-resolution framework for ASEAN cross-border QR payments. Developed with the Asian Payments Network, the guidelines set clear responsibilities for banks, merchants, consumers, and payment switches to boost transparency and strengthen customer protection.

The Council also endorsed two white papers outlining a regional, ecosystem-wide strategy against scams. The first provides a “toolbox” of controls for banks, while the second urges broader participation from telcos, social media platforms, e-commerce sites, and digital payments companies to combat digital fraud more effectively.

Members were likewise updated on the Digital Trade Connectivity initiative, which aims to digitalize end-to-end trade processes across ASEAN.

On inter-regional relations, the Council noted the completion of the 2025 study tour to Hong Kong and agreed to continue in-person tours next year, with proposed focus areas including sustainability, AI, cross-border payments, supply-chain finance, and cybersecurity. A planned memorandum of understanding with the Hong Kong Association of Banks also received broad support.

The Committee on Banking Education reported progress on regional training efforts, including partnerships with the NUS Asian Institute of Digital Finance and the readiness of the Treasury Certification Program for wider ASEAN adoption. Members committed to strengthening national skills frameworks and updating the ABA Training Portal to support capability building, financial literacy, and emerging topics such as tokenization and GenAI.

The meeting also highlighted growing collaboration in Islamic finance—particularly among Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia— stressing the need for continuous knowledge-sharing across ASEAN jurisdictions.

The 54th ASEAN Banking Council Meeting will take place on Philippine soil in the fourth quarter of 2026, to be hosted by the Bankers Association of the Philippines (BAP).