With Malaysia in danger of defaulting on billions in debt obligations and the ringgit looking shaky, Prime Minister Najib Razak has moved to shore up confidence by appointing a professional to head the country’s central bank. The appointment to a five-year term of Muhammad Ibrahim, the bank’s serving deputy governor, as the new Bank Negara governor to replace the respected long-serving chief, Zeti Akhtar Aziz, had a positive effect on both the currency and the stock markets, at least in the short term.