Even as we prepare for the worst, we will strive for the best. Singapore – and our financial sector in particular – are well-placed to thrive in the postCOVID world. We have deep connectivity to Asia, which will be the region earliest to emerge from COVID19 and register the fastest growth rates. We have a high degree of digitalisation, which will be a key source of competitive advantage in the future. We have made a good start on the journey towards sustainability, which will be a growing priority as the world grapples with climate change. Our odds are better than good. Let me stop here and I will be happy to take your questions. 1. [1] On a seasonally adjusted basis, weighted by country shares in Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports. [2] 14 / 15  BIS central bankers' speeches  1. [2] Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam. 1. [3] On a NODX-weighted basis. 1. [4] IMF Working Paper (June 2020), “Who will Bear the Brunt of Lockdown Policies? Evidence from Tele-workability Measures Across Countries”. 1. [5] This includes FinTech jobs in the overall economy, but excludes jobs in holding companies. The employment increase of 6,400 for the financial and insurance sector in 2019, published by MOM, includes holding companies. 1. [6] These numbers exclude holding companies, which is consistent with the ITM-based definition of financial services. At last year’s MAS annual report media conference, it was stated that the 3-year average growth rate during 2016–2018 was 4.1%.

MAS requires financial institutions to develop robust business continuity plans to address events that threaten to disrupt business operations – including pandemic events. These plans have been regularly tested through internal drills and industry-wide exercises jointly organised by MAS and the financial industry. So when COVID-19 struck, the financial sector was able to swiftly execute the necessary measures such as teleworking and operating under split teams to mitigate the risk of disease transmission at the workplace. The pervasive deployment of digital solutions has also been a key factor supporting the industry’s operational resilience. A good part of financial sector activity has moved online, especially customer-facing processes. The initiatives and investments by MAS, financial industry associations, and individual financial institutions over the past five years in digital transformation has reaped strong benefits during this COVID-19 period. Technology has enabled 85% of the workers in Singapore’s financial industry to work at home with minimal disruption during the Circuit Breaker period. A recently published IMF study[4] shows that Singapore has one of the highest teleworkability scores globally. Pervasive remote working arrangements and growing customer use of digital finance has however amplified cyber and technology-related risks. The increased use of remote access technology and video-conference platforms by financial institutions has expanded the cyber attack surface. MAS has also observed a rise in COVID-19-themed online threats, such as luring victims into opening malicious web links or email attachments that purportedly contain COVID-19 related information.