Ask any banking leader in the region whether AI is on the roadmap, and the answer is yes. Ask them where it actually sits today, and the tone changes. The Research That gap was the subject of a study conducted by Sabio World across 14 Malaysian banking institutions earlier this year. The finding: 76% of respondents said they were still running pilots or scaling AI unevenly across enterprise divisions (“scaling in pockets” — some divisions ahead, most not). Only 24% described themselves as actively scaling with a genuine cross-divisional programme. The same study asked where AI breaks down inside an…
Author: Naveen Bankal, Head of Banking and Financial Services for ASEAN, Cognizant
Author
Naveen Bankal, Head of Banking and Financial Services for ASEAN, Cognizant
Cognizant is a multinational technology company, the AI builder that engineers modern businesses by helping clients modernise technology, reimagine processes and build agentic journeys, tools and models that make AI’s potential real for the enterprise. As the Head of Banking and Financial Services for ASEAN, Naveen Bankal leads the strategic direction and growth of Cognizant's business in the region. He is responsible for driving digital transformation initiatives and delivering innovative solutions to clients across the banking and financial services industry. With his extensive experience, Naveen helps organizations navigate the complexities of the market, enabling them to enhance customer experiences and achieve operational excellence.
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The bigger risk for banks in ASEAN isn’t that regulators will slow down agentic AI. It’s the widening gap between pressure to move (cost, competition, customer expectations) and proof you can defend an agent’s actions, especially when audit asks “why did it do that?” or a customer outcome needs to be explained. Across the region, regulators are moving from principles to enforcement. The Philippines, as 2026 ASEAN chair, is pushing AI regulation up the agenda. Singapore’s AI Verify raises the bar on risk management and human accountability, while Malaysia, South Korea, and others advance guidance and legislation. The direction is…