The DBU-ACU divide served us well for decades, but has been losing its relevance. There are a number of reasons for this development. First, since 2004, our developmental incentives have no longer been based on the domestic vs offshore distinction. Second, the divide between domestic and offshore banking has in practice become increasingly porous. 19. Third, and most importantly, there have been major global regulatory developments in the last five years, that have resulted in banks’ offshore activities being subject to rules that are broadly similar to those governing the domestic banking business in Singapore. 2  BIS central bankers’ speeches  •  New global rules have increased the amount and quality of capital as well as the liquidity buffers that banks need to hold  •  Global regulators have also agreed on a common framework to control large exposures to a single counterparty  20. These global regulatory reforms have put all banks on a sounder footing. It has also reduced the relevance of MAS rules that distinguish between offshore and domestic banking activities of foreign banks, since home regulators will now be requiring their banks to meet enhanced standards on a group-wide basis. 21. Post-global financial crisis, we have also seen a strengthening of co-ordination among home and host regulators. MAS is an active member of the global Crisis Management Groups of regulators of foreign banks with significant operations in Singapore. This aims to enhance regulators’ preparedness and coordination in crisis management. 22.
Tharman Shanmugaratnam: Singapore – a widely respected centre of Asian and global finance Keynote address by Mr Tharman Shanmugaratnam, Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, at the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) Annual Dinner, Singapore, 30 June 2015. *  *  *  Chairman and Council Members of the ABS, Ladies and gentlemen, 1. Thank you for inviting me to join you this evening. 2. We meet at a time of renewed uncertainty in global finance. Greece has imposed capital controls and declared a banking holiday to stem a full-blown financial crisis. 3. No one has been able to predict each step in the game of brinkmanship that we have seen over the last few weeks. But the underlying reality of a sharply deteriorating economy in Greece, and the prospect of bankrupt Government, has not been a surprise. It is too early to say if some form of Grexit becomes a reality, but it is a contingency that Eurozone governments and financial institutions have been preparing for. 4. The direct impact of a collapse of the Greek economy is not significant, even in the Eurozone. The ECB and the EU are also likely to take all steps necessary to safeguard the Eurozone financial system in the coming weeks. Markets have hence not shown great panic, with credit spreads widening only slightly in the Eurozone periphery. 5. But there are downside risks we should be mindful of.