UK Business Takes Its Place in ASEAN Finance Dialogue for the First Time

For the first time, UK businesses participated in the ASEAN Finance and Central Bank Deputies' Meeting (AFCDM) 2026 — a milestone that marks a new chapter in the UK's relationship with Southeast Asia's finance and central bank policymakers.

UKABC and TheCityUK were proud to co-lead the UK delegation, and the quality of dialogue that followed reflected the depth of expertise and engagement both sides have carefully built.

A First — and a Foundation

UKABC, in partnership with TheCityUK, led the UK's inaugural consultation at the AFCDM. This was the culmination of several months of preparation and a direct outcome of the MoU both organisations signed in August 2025 to coordinate UK engagement with ASEAN on financial and professional services. The UK delegation presented on two themes central to the future of the partnership: the advancement of ESG standards and sustainable finance practices, and AI governance and risk management in financial services.

Both topics connect directly to ASEAN's own strategic priorities — from financing the ASEAN Power Grid to the forthcoming Digital Economy Framework Agreement (DEFA) — and speak to the genuine complementarity between what UK business brings and what the region needs.

From Deputies to Ministers — UKABC Partners Engaged at Every Level

Building on the AFCDM consultation, UKABC CEO Ian Gibbons OBE and TheCityUK's Nicola Watkinson, MD International, co-chaired two high-level bilateral meetings.

Highlights included a meeting with H.E Satvinder Singh, Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN, which offered a valuable opportunity to take stock of the UK's broad and deep relationship with ASEAN and to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the UK's Dialogue Partnership. Discussions with the Malaysian Finance Minister II and Central Bank Governor were equally substantive, spanning Malaysia's Future Skills Framework, FDI growth, the expansion of digital payments, and the potential introduction of digital assets — all against the backdrop of global economic pressures.

The Road to Singapore

These engagements — from the AFCDM consultation to the bilateral meetings — demonstrated the full range of what the UK-ASEAN partnership can achieve when business and government collaborate. UKABC and TheCityUK are grateful to UKABC’s partners from the financial and professional services sectors that contributed to and took part in these meetings. Your voices shaped a genuinely productive dialogue.

We look forward to returning in 2027, in Singapore, in person and with an even larger delegation.