Kuala Lumpur, June 30 -- Greater economic integration among the members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is accelerating efforts to build an independent and resilient regional financial system, said Lee Pei May, a political expert at the International Islamic University Malaysia.

Speaking in a recent interview with Xinhua, Lee said that the independent and resilient regional financial system will help reduce reliance on external currencies and enhance monetary stability across Southeast Asia.

According to her, these moves are not meant to target any specific country but rather reflect a desire to move away from external financial volatility and facilitate transactions using local currencies for intra-ASEAN trade, wh...