The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has announced a series of new initiatives in digital finance and capital markets, aimed at strengthening financial cooperation with China.
These initiatives were unveiled at the 19th Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (JCBC) in Tianjin, co-chaired by Singapore Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister, Lawrence Wong, and China’s Executive Vice Premier of the State Council, Ding Xuexiang.
The key initiatives include the launch of a Cross-border E-CNY Pilot between China and Singapore, enabling travellers from both countries to use e-CNY for tourism spending.
This follows the 2020 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) on digital finance cooperation between MAS and the Digital Currency Institute of the People’s Bank of China (PBCDCI).
Another significant development is the introduction of the Exchange Traded Funds (ETF) Product Link between the Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Shanghai Stock Exchange (SSE).
This builds on the success of a similar link established with the Shenzhen Stock Exchange in 2022. The first product pairing under this new link was launched on December 1, 2023, featuring CSOP Huatai-Pinebridge SSE Dividend Index ETF and the CSOP iEdge Southeast Asia+ TECH Index ETF on SGX and SSE respectively.
Additionally, SGX has signed an MOU with the Guangzhou Futures Exchange (GFEX) to collaborate on green development-related products and business areas. This involves mutual visits, training, and joint research.
In the realm of remittances, Singapore’s local banks and China’s UnionPay International are exploring a potential linkage between Singapore’s PayNow and UnionPay, which could streamline cross-border payments and remittances.
The China-Singapore Green Finance Task Force (GFTF), established at the 18th JCBC, held its first meeting in April 2023. Under this initiative, MAS and the People’s Bank of China are focusing on creating a green corridor for green and transition financing products, as well as capacity building.
Leong Sing Chiong, Deputy Managing Director (Markets and Development) at MAS, commented on the developments, stating:
It has been a fruitful year of financial cooperation between Singapore and China. MAS welcomes the new initiatives in digital finance and capital markets connectivity, as these will catalyze new financial flows between our financial centres, and deepen trade and economic relations between our economies.