Lessons from Singapore Fintech (i)

Finance is being transformed at a rapid pace with the use of technology to come up with innovative solutions to financial challenges. One country that is keen on becoming the Fintech hub of Asia is Singapore.

This was evident in the recently organized Singapore Fintech Festival 2017 in the country which was attended by more than 25000 professionals from diverse backgrounds ranging from top-tier banking and consulting firms to a host of fintech startups.

BR Research was fortunate enough to have attended the conference and would like to highlight some key takeaways from the week-long event. For starters, it was interesting to see that the fintech transformation in the country is being led by none other than its central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

The MAS has realised that instead of treating it as “fintech disruption”, it is better to think of it as “fintech transformation”. The latter entails an organized and systematic way of implementing the necessary technologies while simultaneously creating a robust regulatory framework for previously uncharted territories.

In Pakistan, fintech is at a nascent stage and there have only been piecemeal efforts by state institutions to actually wrap their heads around a field which experts say is evolving by the second. Yet this column believes it ideal for the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) to be leading the implementation of a conducive fintech ecosystem in the country.

Perhaps, the institution could collaborate with the MAS and take several leaves out of Singapore’s already advanced fintech culture. Ravi Menon, head of the MAS in his inaugural speech mentioned the ongoing efforts of the central bank in collaboration with the industry to come up with an innovative FinTech hub.

According to Menon, there are a number of factors which need to be considered before realizing that vision. The multi-pronged approach calls for an ecosystem of competing and collaborating diverse players. These would ideally operate in an open architecture economy that fosters connectivity and innovation. Other factors include developing a strong talent pool and focusing on enhancing deep research capabilities.

A serious flaw this column has observed was the lack of attendance by any Pakistan government officials or emerging fintech startups. More on the startups in another piece. Yet, when it comes our neighbour, the Indian Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley, was a keynote speaker along with high level delegations.

It is perhaps time now to look outwards and learn from economies such as Singapore. We have already missed the Industrial Revolution. Maybe, if heed is paid at policymaking quarters, Pakistan’s talent pool of young human resource could be given a direction that lets them embrace the future.

It is no secret that across the world the financial industry is witnessing declining growth amidst tighter regulation and intense competition. Back home, financial institutions have also been guilty of maintaining status-quo. That needs to change.