They should develop specific risk mitigation policies for sectors posing higher environmental risks and support the transition of riskier customers and investee companies towards sustainable business practices. They should disclose their approach to managing environmental risks and the impact of these risks on their financial performance. Disclosure should reference internationally accepted reporting frameworks, such as those by the FSB Taskforce on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD). MAS will assess environmental risk in our supervision of financial institutions. This will include assessing how financial institutions integrate environmental risk management with their business operations. Within the next two years, MAS will incorporate climate-related scenarios in our annual stress tests for the financial industry. Disclosure of environmental risk applies as much to non-financial corporates. https://www.mas.gov.sg/news/speeches/2020/harnessing-the-power-of-finance-for-a-sustainable-future  6/13  14/10/2020  “Harnessing the Power of Finance for a Sustainable Future”- Keynote Speech by Mr Ravi Menon, Managing Director, MAS, at the Finan…  Only then can investors price climate-related risks and opportunities and asset managers construct and manage sustainable portfolios for their clients. The Singapore Exchange (SGX) requires listed companies to produce annual sustainability reports on a comply-or-explain basis. SGX will soon include the TCFD recommendations within its existing guidance to assist listed companies with their climate-related financial disclosures. As a central bank and financial regulator, MAS will practise what it preaches. MAS has begun to evaluate the resilience of its Oﬀicial Foreign Reserves under a range of short-term climate-related disruptions and longer-term climate scenarios.
In the upcoming Punggol Digital District, businesses will be connected to a network of sensors collecting real-time data on solar generation, building occupancy, rainfall and humidity; they can use this information to optimise their energy usage. We are working towards a Circular Economy, where resource usage is reduced and resources are re-cycled Singapore is the first country in the world to achieve circularity in the water sector. We collect every drop of used water, treat and purify it, and turn much of it into clean water again. Singapore is extending the circularity principle to other areas. We are experimenting with the use of treated incineration waste as construction materials for building roads. We are looking into transforming waste plastic into alternative fuels. We are recycling food waste into sustainable animal feed. Under the Zero Waste Masterplan, by 2030, Singapore aims to reduce by 30% the amount of waste per capita that we send to our landfills. We are positioning Singapore as a carbon services hub to complement Asia’s decarbonisation eﬀorts. There is good potential in Southeast Asia to generate carbon credits. Singapore can play a role in facilitating the financing of projects that reduce or remove emissions through these credits. A critical enabler for all these sustainability eﬀorts – in Singapore and across Asia – is Green Finance. https://www.mas.gov.sg/news/speeches/2020/harnessing-the-power-of-finance-for-a-sustainable-future  4/13  14/10/2020  “Harnessing the Power of Finance for a Sustainable Future”- Keynote Speech by Mr Ravi Menon, Managing Director, MAS, at the Finan…  Finance fuels the economy, shapes investment decisions, and drives action.