MAS and Abu Dhabi Global Market in collaboration to boost fintech innovation

vivian

March 10, 2017

The signing between Mr. Sopnendu Mohanty, the Chief FinTech Officer of MAS and Mr. Richard Teng, the FSRA Chief Executive Officer of ADGM.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) announced on Wednesday that they have signed a Cooperation Agreement to foster closer cooperation on developments and initiatives that nurture FinTech (financial technology) entrepreneurship and support innovation in financial services in both Singapore and Abu Dhabi.

This new partnership is the result of exchanges between the fintech teams of MAS and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of ADGM as they share the same objective to develop and support the needs of the robust FinTech ecosystem. The agreement was signed by Sopnendu Mohanty, the Chief FinTech Officer of MAS and Richard Teng, the FSRA Chief Executive Officer of ADGM.

The cooperation agreement will establish a strategic framework for both regulators to assist startup ventures and innovators to gain a deeper understanding of the regulatory regimes in each jurisdiction and provide support through the application and authorisation process.

Speaking on the partnership, Mohanty said: “The cooperation that is forged with ADGM marks another step towards strengthening links between regulators, and fostering synergies in promoting innovation and developing capabilities through international co-operation.”

“The agreement will open up new avenues and create opportunities for FinTech firms in Singapore and Abu Dhabi looking to expand into each other’s markets. We look forward to greater knowledge exchange and deeper financial cooperation with the FSRA that will nurture a vibrant FinTech global ecosystem,” he further adds.

Both authorities will also undertake and explore joint innovation projects on the application of key technologies including digital and mobile payments, blockchain and distributed ledgers, big data, flexible platforms (API), and other new technologies.

Both the local market and ecosystem in United Arab Emirates and Singapore are small but the areas are suitable for startups to use business-friendly policies as a launching pad to experiment new products and services with the market.

“Asia and the MENA regions have immense growth potential and a large underserved financial sector. We hope that through closer collaboration with like-minded FinTech hubs, we are able to leverage the strengths and expertise of our markets to more efficiently address the immediate needs of the industry in respective regions and anticipate the demands of the future,” said Richard Teng.

By Vivian Foo, VCNewsNetwork

vivian

Vivian Foo is a reporter who writes about Southeast Asia’s technology and startup space. The entry point which led her to write about the startup ecosystem was her fascination of the dot-com boom. She is taking a deep dive into how the entrepreneurial mindset works and hopes to share the insights, innovation, and stories of the startups with her readers.