of jurisdictions with systemically important financial centres that held up well through the crisis – notably canada, singapore, hong kong and australia - was the presence of a handful of strong anchor banks in each of their systems. 9. we have continued to liberalise the system, a decade after the first major steps that introduced qfbs and enhanced the space for wholesale banks. in 2012, we took steps to encourage foreign banks to deepen their roots in singapore. mas will allow a significantly rooted qfb to operate an additional 25 or up to 50 places of business, as part of an overall fta package negotiated with the home countries of these qfbs. 1 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches in september 2018, we announced that fintechs and other non - bank financial institutions will be granted access to the fast network for real time payments. this is a major step towards making our payments system open, accessible and competitive. 10. but we are in fact at the threshold of a further and more fundamental transformation in banking. the far reaching effects of digitalisation are stimulating a fundamental re - think of the role of banks, in most advanced financial centres. the ramifications go well beyond those ushered in by the technologies and business models of a decade or two ago. 11. we must take advantage of these opportunities that digital finance brings, and not be overtaken by the wave of changes taking place globally. 12. we must allow for greater competition and spur greater innovation in finance – competition between new and traditional business models, new players and incumbents, and different ways of using technology to serve business and individual customers better. we must also retain strong local anchors and trust in the banking system. these dual objectives have guided our past liberalisation initiatives, and motivate our next moves. 13. as we embark on this new phase, however, it is worth reminding ourselves of our real purposes in finance. innovation in finance is not an end in itself. and competition in finance has to be more than a zero sum game - it has sometimes looked like that, as trading desks compete against each other to be a fraction of a second faster and to knock the other out. competition and innovation has to be aimed at serving the needs of society and the economy better, here in singapore and abroad. so it is worth reminding ourselves of these larger purposes and opportunities. i will highlight five : first, financing the growth of infrastructure in emerging asia, and increasingly of climate - resilient, low -

strong local core in our banking system, which must remain our objective as i explained earlier. second, to avoid an unintended unilateral liberalisation of our full bank regime as a result of our wto commitments. mas will also issue up to three digital wholesale bank licences, which will be open to both local and foreign players. the digital wholesale banks will be introduced as a pilot, and 34. mas will review whether to grant more such licences in the future. safeguards 35. to ensure high - quality applicants, mas will set prudent baseline requirements on track record and sustainability of business models. mas will not allow value - destructive competition to the detriment of long - term financial system stability. we will also put in place safeguards to protect depositors, mitigate the risk of untested business models, and minimise costs to the financial system in the event of a failure. we will also ensure that digital banks will compete with incumbents on a level playing field. 36. as digital full banks will have access to retail deposits, mas will phase in their permissible activities via a two - stage process to minimise risks to retail depositors. it will also be required to be a member of the deposit insurance scheme. a digital full bank will commence as a restricted digital bank to build up its business model and internal processes, and gradually progress to become a full functioning full bank. mas will not prescribe a time period within which graduation to a digital full bank must be achieved. when the restricted digital bank first commences operations, it will be subject to an initial deposit cap of s $ 50 million, an individual depositor cap of s $ 75, 000, and generally be allowed to accept deposits from only a small group of depositors such as business partners, staff, related parties and selected customers. 37. mas is prepared to award up to five new digital bank licences - two full and three 5 / 6 bis central bankers'speeches wholesale. we will only award all five if the applicants meet the eligibility and admission criteria, including demonstrating a tangible proposition that is innovative and sustainable. 38. mas is working on implementation details, and expects to invite applications in august this year. 39. today in 2019, we are continuing the process of transforming our banking sector with a progressive opening to new digital banks. we are in a strong position to do so today, as local banks have responded well to changes in the competitive landscape and have in fact