No person shall be entitled to recover from the BCCS the value of any mutilated currency note or coin. However, BCCS is empowered to award value as it deems fit as an act of grace. At the end of 1998, there were 145 commercial banks in Singapore, including nine local ones. Admission criteria for new banks continued to be based on reputation, financial soundness, asset size, extent of international operations and potential contribution to Singapore as a financial centre. The MCB ratio was reduced from 6 per cent to 3 per cent of the liabilities base in July 1998.
Banks are free to quote their own interest rates.
In addition, they can offer savings accounts with interest computed on a daily or monthly basis. Total assets and liabilities of banks expanded by 7.0 per cent in 1998, compared with 14.6 per cent in 1997. Growth of deposits of non-bank customers was 30.7 per cent, higher than the 5.0 per cent in 1997. Fixed deposits rose by 10.7 per cent. Total loans disbursed to non-bank customers grew by 5.9 per cent as against 12.8 per cent in 1997.