Malaysia appoint new central bank governor

Malaysian government on Wednesday announced the replacement of its long-time central bank governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz.

The incumbent deputy governor of Bank Negara Malaysia will assume the position of governor from May 1 for a five-year tenure, replacing Zeti who retires on April 30, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement.

"I'm confident that under his leadership, Bank Negara Malaysia will continue assisting the government with advice to further strengthen Malaysia's economy, as well as managing monetary policy, and regulating and developing the financial services industry," Prime Minister Najib Razak said in the statement.

Muhammad Ibrahim, 56, has been deputy governor since 2010. He holds a master's certificate from Harvard University.

In his 32 years at the central bank, Muhammad Ibrahim covered many areas including bank regulations and supervision, strategic planning, payment systems, insurance, offshore banking and treasury and, financial markets.

Zeti, 68, has been Malaysia's central bank governor since 2000. She was appointed as acting central bank governor in 1998 at the height of the Asian Financial Crisis to implement the exchange control imposed by the government. She was widely respected in and outside Malaysia during her 16 years as central bank governor.