Ungku Zeti Akhtar binti Ungku Abdul Aziz (born 27 August 1947) was the 7th Governor of Bank Negara Malaysia, Malaysia's central bank. She served as Governor from 2000 to 2016, and was the first woman in the position and at 16 years, the longest to hold the position. Zeti was one of the members of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) in Mahathir's second administration, a special advisory council advising the government on economic and financial matters during this transitional period.[1]
Ungku Zeti Akhtar Aziz | |
|---|---|
| 7th Governor of the Central Bank of Malaysia | |
| In office 1 May 2000 – 30 April 2016 | |
| Preceded by | Ali Abul Hassan Sulaiman |
| Succeeded by | Muhammad bin Ibrahim |
| Member of the Malaysian Council of Eminent Persons | |
| In office 12 May 2018 – 21 August 2018 | |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Position abolished |
| Group Chairman of Permodalan Nasional Berhad | |
| In office 1 July 2018 – 30 April 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Abdul Wahid Omar |
| Succeeded by | Arifin Zakaria |
| Chairman of Sime Darby Property | |
| In office 23 July 2018 – 6 May 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Abdul Wahid Omar |
| Succeeded by | Rizal Rickman Ramli |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Zeti Akhtar Aziz 27 August 1947 Johor Bahru, Johor, Malayan Union (now Malaysia) |
| Parent(s) | Ungku Aziz Azah Aziz |
| Alma mater | University of Malaya University of Pennsylvania |
| Profession | Economist |
| Signature |  |
Early life
editZeti Akhtar Aziz was born in Johor Bahru, Johor on 26 August 1947; to father Ungku Aziz, who is of Malay, Circassian[2][3] and English[4] descent, and mother Sharifah Azah Mohamed Alsagoff, who was of Hadhrami Arab and Malay descent.[5][6] Her father Ungku Aziz was an economist and former vice-chancellor for the University of Malaya from 1968 to 1988. He received the title "Royal Professor".
She received her early education at the Assunta School, Petaling Jaya in 1964. She then completed her Form 6 in St. John's Institution, Kuala Lumpur. In 1970, she received a bachelor's degree in Economics from University Malaya.
She continued her studies in the Department of Economics at the University of Pennsylvania (Penn), an Ivy League university in Philadelphia, receiving a PhD in monetary and international economics in 1978. As part of her PhD dissertation, she carried out pioneering work on capital flows and its implications for monetary policy.
Career
editZeti began her career as an economic analyst for the South-East Asia Central Bank Training & Research Center, remaining at that post from 1979 to 1984. She was then appointed Deputy Manager of the Economics Department at Bank Negara Malaysia.
In 2009, Global Finance named her as one of the world's best central bank chiefs.[7] In 2010 during the national-level Ma'al Hijrah celebrations held that year, the Malaysian government had awarded her the title of "Tokoh Ma'al Hijrah 1432H" ("Figure of the New Year 1432AH").[8]
On 20 May 2011, Bloomberg columnist William Pesek had picked Zeti, during her post as Bank Negara governor, as one of his top four nominees to head the prestigious International Monetary Fund after the position became vacant following the resignation of Dominique Strauss-Kahn who was arrested in New York, and is presently facing sexual assault charges.[9]
In 2013, she was again accorded “Grade A” among the heads of central banks for the 10th time by the Global Finance magazine. She was awarded alongside Philippines’ central bank governor Amando Tetangco, Jr. and Taiwan's Central Bank Governor Perng Fai-nan, from a list of central bank governors of more than 50 key countries.[10]
Zeti was named the recipient of Central Banking's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2016.[11]
She receives The Royal Award for Islamic Finance in honouring the excellence service in Islamic Finance on 3 October 2018.[12][13]
Zeti who was the Chairman of the Asian Institute of Finance has also receives the William “Bill” Seidman Award for Lifetime Achievement in Leadership in the Financial Services Industry for 2018.[14]
On 12 May 2018 just after the 2018 general election (GE14), the new Pakatan Harapan (PH) ruling coalition Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad announced that Zeti was appointed as one of the members of the Council of Eminent Persons (CEP) to serves as advisors to the new PH government.[1] She joined Daim Zainuddin, Robert Kuok, Jomo Kwame Sundaram and Hassan Marican.[15] The purpose of the council was to advise the government on matters pertaining to economic and financial matters during the 100-days transition of power period.[16][17]
Zeti was appointed the Group Chairman of Permodalan Nasional Berhad (PNB) on 1 July 2018.[18] She was also appointed the Chairman of Sime Darby Property. She is the first woman to hold the post.[19]
Personal life
editZeti is married to Tawfiq Ayman[20] and they have two children.[21]
Honours
editHonours of Malaysia
edit
Malaysia:
Commander of the Order of Loyalty to the Crown of Malaysia (PSM) – Tan Sri (2001)[22]
Johor:
Knight Commander of the Order of the Crown of Johor (DPMJ) – Datin Paduka (1998)
Second Class of the Royal Family Order of Johor (DK II) (2000)
Pahang:
Grand Knight of the Order of Sultan Ahmad Shah of Pahang (SSAP) – Dato' Sri (2002)[23]
Federal Territory (Malaysia):
Grand Knight of the Order of the Territorial Crown (SUMW) – Datuk Seri Utama (2009)[23]
Foreign honour
edit
Japan:
Gold and Silver Star of the Order of the Rising Sun (2017)[24]
References
edit- ^ a b "Who's who in Mahathir's new Cabinet and Council of Elders". The Straits Times. 12 May 2018. Retrieved 13 May 2018.
- ^ Syed Muhammad Naquib al-Attas Archived January 14, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, MSA Library Online
- ^ Taking root, branching out, Dzireena Mahadzir, April 1, 2007, The Star (Malaysia)
- ^ Abid, Jaafar, pp66
- ^ "Finance's female face". TMCnet.com. 2005-12-29.
- ^ "The world's successful diasporas". managementtoday.com. 2007-04-03.
- ^ "Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz the world's best central bank chief". All Voices.com. Sep 13, 2010.
- ^ "Tan Sri Dr Zeti named 'Tokoh Ma'al Hijrah'". The Star. December 7, 2010.
- ^ "Zeti one of Bloomberg columnist's top picks to head IMF". The Malaysian Insider. May 21, 2011.
- ^ "Bank Negara's Zeti awarded 'Grade A' among central bank governors". The Star. Aug 27, 2013.
- ^ "Lifetime achievement award: Zeti Akhtar Aziz". Central Banking. 2016-01-14. Retrieved 2019-05-14.
- ^ "Tan Sri Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz, 5th Recipient of the Royal Award for Islamic Finance – A Collection of Speeches and Public Lectures in Connection With the Royal Award 10th Year Anniversary". The Royal Award for Islamic Finance. 28 January 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ "Honouring Excellence in Islamic Finance: The 2018 Royal Award Recipient, Tan Sri Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz". Securities Commission Malaysia. 3 October 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ "Zeti Akhtar Aziz receives the William "Bill" Seidman Award for Lifetime Achievement in Leadership in the Financial Services Industry for 2018". The Asian Banker. 24 May 2018. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ hermesauto (12 May 2018). "Who's who in Mahathir's new Cabinet and Council of Elders". The Straits Times. Retrieved 30 July 2018.
- ^ Manirajan Ramasamy, Masriwanie Muhamading (August 20, 2018). "CEP has ended its tenure, says Daim". New Straits Times. Archived from the original on 10 August 2019. Retrieved August 20, 2018.
- ^ "Malaysia's Council of Eminent Persons completes 100 days, to submit recommendations". Channel News Asia. August 21, 2018. Archived from the original on 20 October 2018. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ "Zeti apppointed [sic] PNB group chairman, takes over from Wahid - Business News | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-07-16.
- ^ "Sime Darby Property appoints Zeti as chairman - Business News | The Star Online". www.thestar.com.my. Retrieved 2018-07-25.
- ^ "Husband of former Malaysian central bank chief questioned by police". The Straits Times. 15 April 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ "'S'pore alerted BNM on Jho Low transfers to Zeti's husband's company in 2015'". Malaysiakini. 27 February 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
- ^ "Senarai Penuh Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang dan Pingat Persekutuan Tahun 2001" (PDF).
- ^ a b "Semakan Penerima Darjah Kebesaran, Bintang Dan Pingat". Prime Minister's Department (Malaysia). Retrieved 25 December 2020.
- ^ "Celebration of Tan Sri Dr. Zeti Akhtar Aziz's award of The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star". Embassy of Japan in Malaysia. 27 April 2018. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
