The lion city's financial regulator and industry leaders are on a truly global bridge-building spree, expanding market access across Asia Pacific, Europe and Africa. finews.asia reviews the new links with Singapore.
Since late November, the MAS has been establishing links to launch or promote financial market access with economies all over the world in notably swift fashion. Within its geographical home region of Southeast Asia, it will speed up cross-border flows with Thailand by building a bridge between digital payment platforms from the two countries, PayNow and PayPrompt.
In the broader ASEAN region, MAS managing director Ravi Menon even floated the idea of making China-ASEAN trade flows cheaper and faster by digitalizing certain parts of the financial process such as documents for acknowledging receipt of cargo shipments.
Chinese Leg
Singapore has been especially active in bolstering relationships with China beginning with Chongqing where an agreement was made last month for iSTOX to build a digital exchange alongside other initiatives.
More recently, multiple memoranda of understanding were signed amongst government organizations, local lenders, such as DSB and UOB, and the Singapore Exchange to jointly develop and promote each other’s bond market in the Shanghai Free Trade Zone. Other initiatives with the largest mainland hub include greater collaboration in the cross-border yuan, fintech and green finance with mainland firms like Guotai Junan Securities and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank.
Singapore is becoming closer to China even at the national level with plans for collaboration on the digital yuan as well as greater access for players like China Construction Bank and Zhengzhou Commodity Exchange.
European Leg
Following the latest post-Brexit free trade agreement signed between the U.K. and Singapore, the two could benefit from greater commitment to boost digital trade and financial services between Europe and Southeast Asia.
British access to Singapore’s financial market could also be expanded through a potential increase in the electronic wallet payment limits, which affects U.K. fintechs like TransferWise and Revolut, as well as opportunities for U.K. firms to apply for digital wholesale banking licenses, according to a «Business Times» report.
Even in Central Europe, Singapore is strengthening ties with a new fintech coop agreement signed between the MAS and Hungary’s central bank Magyar Nemzeti Bank (MNB).
African Leg
MAS efforts have extended even beyond traditional hubs to the likes of Ghana where a cooperation agreement has been signed with the Bank of Ghana to help SMEs and micro-SMEs in the two countries by boosting flows through Singapore’s AI-based trade discovery and flow platform.
The MAS is attempting to make good on its declared ambitions to realize fintech’s «potential to be a force for good», Menon said in a speech during the recent Singapore fintech festival.
Menon underlined two themes, in particular, that could be key drivers of a favorable post-pandemic outcome including greater financial inclusion for individuals and SMEs as well as sustainability such as growth with a focus on climate change.
