Interest rate spread in Malaysia
Malaysia: Interest rate spread was 2.4% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Interest rate spread in Malaysia, 1969–2025
Source: International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF). Measured in lending rate minus deposit rate, %.
Analysis
Malaysia recorded 2.4% for interest rate spread in 2025.
That represents a change of down 8.8% on the previous year and up 67.9% over ten years.
Over the whole period, interest rate spread in Malaysia peaked at 7.4% in 1987 and was at its lowest, 1.4%, in 2015.
That places Malaysia 118th out of 140 countries with data for 2025, putting it in the bottom quarter.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 57 years of available data.
Interest rate spread in Malaysia, year by year
| Year | lending rate minus deposit rate, % | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1969 | 3.6% | — |
| 1970 | 3.7% | +1.6% |
| 1971 | 3.7% | -0.3% |
| 1972 | 3.9% | +4.9% |
| 1973 | 4.4% | +14.8% |
| 1974 | 4.9% | +9.3% |
| 1975 | 4.5% | -6.5% |
| 1976 | 4.5% | -0.3% |
| 1977 | 4.3% | -5.9% |
| 1978 | 4.3% | +0.9% |
| 1979 | 3.9% | -8.6% |
| 1980 | 3.9% | -0.7% |
| 1981 | 2.2% | -43.3% |
| 1982 | 2.6% | +19.5% |
| 1983 | 3.8% | +41.9% |
| 1984 | 2.7% | -27.8% |
| 1985 | 3.7% | +38.0% |
| 1986 | 5.2% | +37.8% |
| 1987 | 7.4% | +42.8% |
| 1988 | 6.0% | -18.4% |
| 1989 | 4.3% | -27.9% |
| 1990 | 3.1% | -29.3% |
| 1991 | 2.2% | -27.0% |
| 1992 | 2.2% | -0.4% |
| 1993 | 3.0% | +35.0% |
| 1994 | 3.9% | +28.8% |
| 1995 | 2.8% | -27.8% |
| 1996 | 2.9% | +2.2% |
| 1997 | 2.9% | -0.2% |
| 1998 | 3.6% | +27.0% |
| 1999 | 4.4% | +22.6% |
| 2000 | 4.3% | -2.9% |
| 2001 | 3.8% | -13.0% |
| 2002 | 3.3% | -11.4% |
| 2003 | 3.2% | -2.7% |
| 2004 | 3.0% | -5.8% |
| 2005 | 3.0% | -3.1% |
| 2006 | 3.3% | +13.1% |
| 2007 | 3.2% | -2.8% |
| 2008 | 3.0% | -8.9% |
| 2009 | 3.0% | +1.6% |
| 2010 | 2.5% | -16.8% |
| 2011 | 2.0% | -19.8% |
| 2012 | 1.8% | -9.9% |
| 2013 | 1.7% | -6.9% |
| 2014 | 1.5% | -8.4% |
| 2015 | 1.4% | -7.0% |
| 2016 | 1.5% | +5.0% |
| 2017 | 1.7% | +12.0% |
| 2018 | 1.8% | +6.0% |
| 2019 | 1.9% | +6.1% |
| 2020 | 2.0% | +5.1% |
| 2021 | 1.9% | -5.4% |
| 2022 | 2.0% | +4.1% |
| 2023 | 2.7% | +36.1% |
| 2024 | 2.6% | -1.2% |
| 2025 | 2.4% | -8.8% |
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 3.6% | 3.6% | 3.6% | 1 |
| 1970s | 4.2% | 3.7% | 4.9% | 10 |
| 1980s | 4.2% | 2.2% | 7.4% | 10 |
| 1990s | 3.1% | 2.2% | 4.4% | 10 |
| 2000s | 3.3% | 3.0% | 4.3% | 10 |
| 2010s | 1.8% | 1.4% | 2.5% | 10 |
| 2020s | 2.3% | 1.9% | 2.7% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Malaysia
- 115 Israel 2.5% compare
- 116 Russian Federation 2.5% compare
- 117 Kuwait 2.4% compare
- 119 Bosnia and Herzegovina 2.3% compare
- 120 Hungary 2.3% compare
- 121 Switzerland 2.0% compare
More financial sector data for Malaysia
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), per capita 82,207 current LCU per person (2025)
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), per unit of GDP 6.26 current LCU per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Net domestic credit (current LCU), annual growth rate 5.16 % change on previous year (2025)
- Gold reserves at 35 SDRs per ounce 43.75 million SDR (2025)
- Gold reserves at market value 3.99 billion SDR (2025)
- Reserves excluding gold, foreign exchange 82.45 billion SDR (2025)
- Reserves excluding gold 87.75 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at market value) 91.73 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at national valuation) 91.67 billion SDR (2025)
- Total reserves (gold at national valuation) (SDR), per capita 2,548 SDR per person (2025)
Frequently asked questions
- What is interest rate spread in Malaysia?
- Interest rate spread in Malaysia was 2.4% in 2025, according to International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF).
- What is the highest interest rate spread recorded in Malaysia?
- The highest recorded value was 7.4% in 1987.
- What is the lowest interest rate spread recorded in Malaysia?
- The lowest recorded value was 1.4% in 2015.
- How does Malaysia rank for interest rate spread?
- Malaysia ranks 118th out of 140 countries with data for 2025.
- Is interest rate spread rising or falling in Malaysia?
- Over the last ten years it is up 67.9%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Malaysia data come from?
- The figures come from International Financial Statistics database, International Monetary Fund (IMF), published as part of Interest rate spread (lending rate minus deposit rate, %). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
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About this data
Interest rate spread is the interest rate charged by banks on loans to private sector customers minus the interest rate paid by commercial or similar banks for demand, time, or savings deposits. The terms and conditions attached to these rates differ by country, however, limiting their comparability.