Verity journal

On 1st January this year, Bank Negara’s policy on Employee Screening came into effect. This policy specifically applies to licensed financial institutions (FIs) like banks, investment banks, Islamic banks, insurers, Takaful operators, prescribed development financial institutions and financial holding companies.

The aim of this policy is to promote a more ethical financial sector, by raising awareness that the recruitment process can be used as an opportunity for FIs to identify the individuals that are aligned with the institution’s desired corporate culture and values.

The policy was created to be aligned with some of Bank Negara’s existing policies, like the Corporate Governance policy and Code of Conduct for Malaysia Wholesale Financial Markets,  The Fit & Proper Criteria and The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Framework.

This new policy requires FIs to obtain employment references as far as seven years back and obtain criminal conviction records (if any), especially those that involve money laundering or terrorism financing, and offences involving dishonesty or fraud.

FIs also have to establish an internal disciplinary process in which they are required to address any breaches to its code of ethics and policies while keeping meticulous records of documents and information relating to the screening process.

These tasks, while daunting, are not impossible to do. This is where Verity Intelligence can assist to conduct HR verification of past employment records for the last 7 years, conduct criminality and local Integrity checks, Malaysian regulatory checks or verify a candidate’s professional memberships.

In the long term, this policy can greatly benefit FIs in hiring and retaining trustworthy talent, clear communication of job roles, expectations and relevant policies, increasing credibility among customers, preserving the business’ integrity and the maintenance of a process that ensures accountability and efficiency.  

With exhaustive research into Bank Negara Malaysia’s Employee Screening requirements, Verity Intelligence is able to provide counsel to help financial institutions meets compliance standards.

With this new policy, Bank Negara has shown great commitment to increase transparency within the financial industry. If you want to read more articles about how financial institutions can benefit from background screening services, click here or visit www.verityintel.com to learn about Verity Intelligence.