Untied Loan for Maybank
Boosting Local Supporting Industries in ASEAN in Collaboration with Maybank in Malaysia

• Region: Asia
• Manufacturing and Services
• Untied Loans

1. The Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC; President and CEO: Hiroshi Watanabe)^*1 signed on March 29 an untied loan agreement totaling up to 200 million US dollars with Malaysian Banking Berhad (Maybank).
    
2. Maybank is Malaysia's largest bank by total assets, providing broad financial services through its group companies. Maybank group has, in addition to its extensive Malaysian branch network, offices in 13 other countries including Singapore, Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam and Brunei and the Philippines. This loan aims to provide financing primarily for the local supporting industries by collaborating with Maybank group with its broad network in the ASEAN region, thereby helping Japanese affiliates operating in the ASEAN region, to build more advanced supply chains to improve the quality of local goods; and to reduce their production costs. This will contribute to strengthen the international competitiveness of Japanese industries. JBIC first provided a 200 million US dollar loan for Maybank in May 2009.^*2  This brings to date the total loan facility from JBIC to Maybank to 400 million US dollars. This loan is expected to provide additional stable financial resources for local supporting industries by drawing on the previous experience of collaboration between JBIC and Maybank.
    
3. ASEAN member countries are making steady progress toward reducing their mutual tariffs. Japan has also been taking forward steps to sign bilateral Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs) with individual ASEAN countries. Furthermore, the Japan-ASEAN Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement entered into force in December 2008. These developments have strengthened economic ties between Japan and ASEAN member countries. This loan will support the activities of Japanese affiliates in the ASEAN region that is moving closer to becoming an integrated economic zone.
    
4. JBIC is committed to implementing effective measures to support overseas business activities of Japanese industries by utilizing a variety of financial instruments.

Note

1. *1 JBIC is the international wing of the Japan Finance Corporation (JFC; Governor: Shosaku Yasui).
2. *2 See Press Release on May 29, 2009.
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