Malaysia’s capital market currently stands at RM4.2 trillion, with Islamic instruments making up around 62 per cent, said the Securities Commission (SC).
Its chairman, Datuk Mohammad Faiz Azmi, stated that Malaysia accounts for one-third of all global sukuk issuances.
“About 80 per cent of our listed companies are designated as shariah-compliant. This depth gives us the platform to pilot Maqasid al-Shariah-aligned disclosures, covenants and outcome-linked structures at a meaningful scale,” he said in his opening address at the 16th Roundtable of the Securities Commission Malaysia and the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies (OCIS) here today.
Mohammad Faiz stated that when fiduciary duty aligns with the principles of Maqasid al-Shariah — the fundamental guiding principles in the Islamic capital market — it results in a structured set of expectations that are applied differently across the ecosystem.
“Board members must set strategies that safeguard not only shareholder returns, but also look to the intergenerational use of resources to ensure business models do not create long-term harm,” he said.
Mohammad Faiz emphasised that senior management has the responsibility to translate these commitments into operating policies and risk management practices, embedding climate and sustainability factors into planning, stress tests and remuneration.
Meanwhile, investors and fund managers owe a duty to evaluate investments not just for financial returns but also to advance or undermine the objectives of shariah.
Regulators, in turn, must develop rules, incentives and disclosures to make accountability visible and enforceable, he said.
Mohammad Faiz stated that Malaysia has progressed from merely expressing intentions to actively implementing them.
“Under the National Sustainability Reporting Framework, Main Market public-listed companies with market capitalisation above RM2 billion begin climate-related reporting this year.
“The rest of the Main Market will follow in 2026. Subsequently, ACE Market public listed companies and large unlisted companies in 2027,” he said.