Malaysia Gold Association (MGA) president Louis Ng said Malaysia’s strengths include coherent government policies, driving the healthy growth of the gold industry.

“Malaysia has strong potential to become a global physical gold trading hub, because our government is always setting the right policies for the healthy growth of the precious metals industry, especially gold,” he said during a press conference at the Malaysia Gold Conference here today.

Ng said the domestic precious metals industry has expanded rapidly, employing about a quarter of a million people across the value chain, from trading and retail to manufacturing and related services.

He said the MGIP, which is expected to be officially published in the third quarter (Q3) of this year, will be instrumental in strengthening governance, transparency and confidence in the domestic gold market, particularly by addressing quality standards and responsible business conduct among traders and retailers.

“With the MGIP, one of the modules we are going to cover is how to control the quality of members.

“Eventually, all the retail shops will carry a symbol or logo to show that they are responsible gold shops,” he said.

Ng said that the initiative, while voluntary, would help shape a more trustworthy and standardised gold trading ecosystem.

MGIP will serve as Malaysia’s self-regulatory foundation for the precious metals industry, covering responsible sourcing, ethical conduct, consumer protection and alignment with global compliance expectations.

He added that the principles were developed through collaboration with key stakeholders – including frameworks set by the World Gold Council – to enhance confidence across the entire ecosystem, while reinforcing Malaysia’s position as a well-governed and globally aligned precious metals hub.