KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) today assured that all banks will be operating during a tighter Movement Control Order (MCO) beginning June 1 until June 14.

In a tweet posted at 5.10pm today, the central bank said the public was encouraged to plan cash requirements to reduce movement to bank branches or ATM machines.

"Make the best of available online use (for example, Internet banking) for efficient, fast and secure transactions," BNM said

On Friday, the National Security Council (NSC) has decided to tighten the implementation of the current MCO with more restrictions on the social and economic sectors, according to the Prime Minister's Office.

The council, after a special meeting on May 21 chaired by Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and attended by state government heads, agreed that more effort needed to be made to flatten the COVID-19 infection curve.

Economic activities that are allowed to continue include food and beverage businesses, utilities, transport, banking, e-commerce and the communications sector covering media, telecommunications and postal services.

Malayan Banking Bhd (Maybank) today announced that its branches nationwide would operate by appointment only from June 2 until further notice, while some will be temporarily closed to support the nation's ongoing efforts to curb the Covid-19 pandemic.

In a statement today, the bank said the measure would enable better crowd management at branches and reduce the potential of transmission as far as possible in a further endeavour to protect the safety of its customers and employees.

"Customers who wish to book an appointment may do so online via Maybank EzyQ on MAE app and Maybank2u web," it added.

-- BERNAMA