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.
They recognise and support our desire to develop deep skills and a strong pipeline of Singaporean talent, as part of a vibrant and competitive global financial centre. It is in our collective interest that we do this, and in the interests of each financial institution over the long term. 33. As part of the national SkillsFuture effort, MAS in partnership with the industry and educational and training institutes is now embarking on further initiatives. We will strengthen support for every finance professional to learn continuously, develop his or her expertise, and have a good career. This includes developing Singaporean leaders in finance, with the capabilities to take on responsibilities in Asia and further afield. Continual Learning and Deepening Specialist Skills 34. Let me describe these initiatives briefly, starting with our efforts to promote continual learning and to develop deep pools of financial sector expertise in Singapore. Finance Scholarship Programme (FSP) 35. First, under the Finance Scholarship Programme (FSP), MAS supports early-career Singaporeans in developing specialist capabilities through post-graduate studies. This includes specialisations in quantitative finance, risk management, actuarial science and specialty insurance, and emerging priorities such as cyber security, data analytics and fraud risk detection. Since the scholarship’s inauguration in 2006, more than 150 FSP scholarships  4  BIS central bankers’ speeches  have been awarded. MAS will provide 30 scholarships per year to add to the pipeline of specialist talents in the financial sector. SkillsFuture Study Awards 36. Second, MAS will offer up to 70 SkillsFuture Study Awards each year for financial sector professionals.