KUALA LUMPUR: Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) Governor Tan Sri Dr Zeti Akhtar Aziz, who will be ending her final five-year term as chief of the central bank in April, wants a clean slate for her successor and hopes investigations into strategic investment firm 1Malaysia Development Bhd (1MDB) will be concluded by then.

In a televised CNBC exclusive interview held in Hong Kong this evening, the governor, who led BNM since 2000, took on questions on the 1MDB probe in which the central bank was one of the investigating parties, along with the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission, the Attorney General and the police.

"We [the BNM] are not the only investigating authority, there are others, so it is ongoing and everyone wants a conclusion to it so that we can just move on and so that the currency will better reflect our fundamentals and we can deal with the other economic issues that the country is being confronted with.

"I'm hoping that it can be all concluded by then so that I can hand over a clean slate to the next governor," she told CNBC anchor Bernie Lo.

The governor was also asked by Lo about her relationship with current Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak, which he described, based on news reports gathered, as "challenging".

On this, the governor pointed out that it was in fact the current leadership that supported the central banking legislation in 2009, which legislates the central bank's independence.

"We were successful in legislating that independence and on top of it, we also legislated wide ranging powers which made some people question that the central bank was becoming too powerful in fact, but within that legislation we also legislated the accountability and the governance process and the transparency so that the central bank would never abuse its powers.

"So that is the relationship that we have with the government, it is a professional relationship and as an emerging market central bank we have a role in also performing other functions that some central banks in the developed world don't have, that relates to achieving some social objectives like financial inclusion and supporting small businesses and so on," said Zeti.

She went on to say that a central bank governor will have to sacrifice building any close relationship with politicians or the financial industry.

"I have always maintained a professional relationship not only with the politicians but also with the industry. So it is a sacrifice actually for whoever takes on the position of the governor, because you cannot build up any close relationship with politicians or with the financial industry

"So who have been my friends? They are actually other central bankers and they will probably be what I will miss the most, the long-lasting friendships that we meet all the time as central bankers. We are very cohesive and close knit and that is the community I will miss," said Zeti.

When asked by Lo if it is a done deal that BNM Deputy Governor Datuk Muhammad Ibrahim would be the one to succeed her, Zeti said nothing has been concluded yet.

"Of this matter, nothing is done until the King, the Agong, gives the royal assent," she said.

Zeti, who has been with BNM with 35 years of which 16 were as its governor, shared that her tenure as governor has been a long marathon with some parts through very treacherous terrain.

However, she never regretted her decision to serve the country.

"I am a highly focused person, focused on what are the objectives I want ... what are the goals, what are the outcomes, and I had great clarity in my mind about what's needed to be achieved and transformation of the financial system.

"It is all about actually building resilience of the economy, of the financial system, and of the bank as well, the institutional resilience is equally important. So I found it very exciting and exhilarating to be involved in that," she said.

Zeti added that she has invested time in protecting the central bank from being drawn into political controversy, tension and disruptions as they do occur.

"We can't allow ourselves to be distracted, and it's so easy to be distracted by the noise that is happening around you. But if you're very focused and you know in the end what you have to deliver, you always stay very focused and you always ensure that the whole governance process is also in place.

"There is a framework for how decisions are made so you will not be influenced by this kind of developments and there are things that just are beyond our powers, that we just have to take as a given, so within this then, this is what we need to focus on," she said.