Bank Negara Malaysia and the Bank of Korea announce today the activation of the “Malaysia-Korea Currency Swap-financed Trade Settlement Facility” whereby up to MYR15 billion or KRW5 trillion will be made available to facilitate trade settlements between firms of both countries using our respective currencies. This facility is developed arising from the Malaysia-Korea Currency Swap Arrangement agreement that was signed between the two central banks on 20 October 2013.
 
Bank Negara Malaysia will provide Korean won funds to banks in Malaysia that in turn will facilitate Malaysian firms' use of Korean won for trade settlement. Likewise, the Bank of Korea will facilitate Korean firms' use of Malaysian ringgit for their trade settlement by providing Malaysian ringgit funds to banks in Korea.
 
The two central banks' strong support for this trade settlement facility will accelerate the use of both countries' currencies for cross-border trade between the two countries. This will benefit importers and exporters of both countries by reducing the risk of currency mismatches and potentially lower transaction costs in international trade between the two countries.
 
For details of the Bank of Korea's press release, please visit http://www.bok.or.kr.