Singapore’s Financial Sector: How did we arrive, how do we thrive?
Singapore’s financial services have grown into a core pillar of the economy and a trusted global hub, underpinned by deliberate institution-building and long-term strategy. This lecture series traces Singapore’s evolution from the Asian Dollar Market and two-tier banking system to a diversified ecosystem spanning asset management, capital markets, commodities, wealth management, and insurance. It will also examine how digitalisation, new players, and technologies are reshaping Singapore’s financial system, as well as where and how money and financial assets moves, before looking ahead to the choices Singapore faces as it balances innovation with stability and trust. What lessons from the past remain salient? Where must we adapt to thrive in the next phase
Reinventing Finance in the Digital Age
The second lecture examines how new technologies have redrawn the financial landscape: new entrants such as fintechs and digital banks, embedded finance and the ongoing transformation of local banks. The lecture will explore the evolving risks our current system faces — liquidity and operational risks amplified by social media, scams, digitisation and AI-related threats — and survey system-level responses and shifts. From these shifts, the lecture shares the enduring lessons about Singapore’s position as a small, open city-state and explores how we can arrive at a pragmatic balance between innovation and regulation. How has the balance been maintained in the past? What do we do to maintain this delicate balance with increasingly rapid innovation?
To find out more about Mr Piyush Gupta, the 17th S R Nathan Fellow, click here.
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