10  BIS central bankers’ speeches  We are still in early days on this initiative and will work with the industry on how best to take this forward. Fourth, supporting a FinTech ecosystem. The effort to grow a Smart Financial Centre must go beyond the financial industry, to help nurture a wider FinTech ecosystem. We need a strong FinTech community that can: •  generate ideas and innovations that FIs could adapt and adopt; and  •  provide a platform for collaborations with the industry to produce innovative solutions for defined problems and needs. For those of you who are not aware, we have a pretty vibrant FinTech start-up community that is growing over at the “Launchpad” in Ayer Rajah Industrial Estate. MAS looks forward to engaging FinTech start-ups more actively – to better understand emerging innovations as well to help them design their solutions bearing in mind the regulations and risk considerations that apply to the financial industry. Fifth, building skills and competencies in technology. Technology will disintermediate and make obsolete many jobs in the financial sector, but it will also create new ones. Finance professionals will need new capabilities. And the industry will need skills and expertise from other disciplines traditionally not associated with finance. MAS and the financial industry must work together to prepare for the changes ahead on the jobs and skills front. Building capabilities and opportunities in FinTech will be a key area of focus in the financial sector’s SkillsFuture drive.
More recently, we have engaged industry players more directly to co-create rules and guidance – in other words, to jointly come up with proposals. •  An example is the Private Banking Industry Code – developed by industry practitioners but in close consultation with MAS. •  Such co-creation is particularly relevant for developing rules or guidance on new technologies whose benefits and risks are not fully known and where a more flexible approach may be desired. 8  BIS central bankers’ speeches  A further possibility in co-creation might be MAS and the industry working together to develop common technology infrastructure that meets regulatory requirements. The aim is to clarify and address issues and uncertainties upfront during the course of development. MAS is not seeking a zero-risk regime. And we understand that failure is part of the learning process. •  If things do go wrong with an innovative product or service, and there will no doubt be some failures, the FI will need to review its implementation and draw lessons. •  MAS will examine the facts to assess if there is any systemic or deeper issue that needs to be addressed, and determine if any action needs to be taken. Development initiatives for a smart financial centre Besides providing a conducive regulatory environment, MAS will work closely with the industry to chart strategies for a Smart Financial Centre.