Personal Finance Glossary

OPR

Overnight Policy Rate

The interest rate at which banks lend to each other overnight, set by Bank Negara Malaysia. It is the benchmark that moves your home loan repayments and FD returns.

FD

Fixed Deposit

A savings instrument where you lock in a sum with a bank for a fixed tenure (1–60 months) in exchange for a guaranteed interest rate higher than a regular savings account.

PIDM

Perbadanan Insurans Deposit Malaysia

Malaysia's deposit insurance scheme that protects your savings at member banks up to RM250,000 per depositor per bank if the bank fails.

BNM

Bank Negara Malaysia

Malaysia's central bank, responsible for monetary policy, financial system stability, and regulating banks, insurance companies, and money service businesses.

BR

Base Rate

The minimum interest rate at which Malaysian banks can lend, determined by each bank's cost of funds. Variable-rate home loans are priced as Base Rate + spread.

FD Laddering

A strategy of splitting your savings across multiple fixed deposits with different maturity dates, balancing liquidity access with higher interest rates for longer tenures.

Shariah-Compliant

A financial product structured according to Islamic principles — prohibiting riba (interest), gharar (excessive uncertainty), and maysir (gambling). Returns are structured as profit-sharing, trade margins, or service fees instead.

EPF / KWSP

Employees Provident Fund

Malaysia's mandatory retirement savings scheme for private sector employees, administered by KWSP (Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja). Both employee and employer contribute a percentage of monthly salary.

EPF i-Invest

A facility that allows EPF members to transfer a portion of their Account 1 savings into approved unit trusts or ETFs, aiming for returns higher than the EPF dividend.

Unit Trust

A pooled investment where investors buy units in a professionally managed fund that holds a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds, or other assets.

ASB

Amanah Saham Bumiputera

A fixed-price unit trust fund by ASNB (Amanah Saham Nasional Berhad), available only to Bumiputera investors. The price is fixed at RM1 per unit — returns come entirely from the annual dividend.

Robo-Advisor

An automated investment platform that builds and rebalances a diversified portfolio on your behalf using algorithms, typically at much lower fees than traditional fund managers.

DCA

Dollar Cost Averaging

An investment strategy where you invest a fixed amount at regular intervals regardless of market price, automatically buying more units when prices are low and fewer when prices are high.

CCRIS

Central Credit Reference Information System

A central database maintained by Bank Negara Malaysia that records your credit history with all licensed financial institutions — loans, credit cards, outstanding balances, and repayment track record.

CTOS

CTOS Score

A credit score from 300–850 calculated by CTOS Data Systems, Malaysia's largest credit reporting agency. Higher scores indicate lower credit risk to lenders.

DSR

Debt Service Ratio

The percentage of your monthly income that goes toward servicing all debt repayments. Most Malaysian banks cap loan approval at a DSR of 60–70% depending on income level.

Annual Fee Waiver

A condition under which a credit card's annual fee is waived, typically requiring a minimum number of transactions or a minimum spend amount within a 12-month period.

Cashback

A credit card reward where a percentage of your spend is returned as cash, credited to your statement. Distinct from reward points which must be redeemed for goods or flights.

CPI

Consumer Price Index

A measure of inflation published monthly by DOSM (Department of Statistics Malaysia) that tracks how the prices of a basket of goods and services change over time.

LHDN / IRB

Lembaga Hasil Dalam Negeri

Malaysia's Inland Revenue Board — the government agency responsible for collecting income tax, real property gains tax (RPGT), and stamp duty.