singapore's code of corporate governance. the code was last reviewed in 2005 and took effect for all agms held on or after 1 january 2007. the code has served us well. however, this financial crisis has thrown up valuable lessons on corporate governance. members of our media, academia and the corporate and financial sector have also been suggesting possible improvements, and several overseas jurisdictions have also completed or are in the process of updating their own codes. it is therefore timely for us to embark on another review. in determining the scope of the review, the council could consider the suggestions for improvements from stakeholders, and developments in other jurisdictions, taking into account the local context where relevant. higher standards for banks & insurance companies this financial crisis has shown that the failures of financial institutions with significant operations can destabilise the entire financial system, and severely disrupt economic activities. mas'approach has been to require high regulatory and prudential standards for locally incorporated banks and life insurance companies as well as standards of corporate governance that are more stringent than what they have to observe as listed companies. locally incorporated banks and significant life insurers are required to comply with the corporate governance regulations which are mandatory as opposed to the code which is applied on a " comply or explain " basis. the corporate governance regulations also impose more stringent requirements regarding the composition of boards and board committees. mas is in the midst of reviewing the corporate governance framework for locally incorporated banks and insurers. the review will focus on the effectiveness of risk management at the board level, including the role played by boards in safeguarding the safety and soundness of their institutions and in addressing market conduct risks. this would include a review of the board's role in setting remuneration policies to manage risks effectively and the need for the board to comprise members with relevant expertise and experience in the technical, financial and operational aspects of risk management of the various lines of business of the financial institution. mas will also review the need to further tighten the definition of independence by requiring the nominating committee to consider the length of service on the board as an additional criterion in determining the independence of a director. with regards to remuneration practices, mas has done an initial assessment of the practices of our local banks against the principles for sound compensation practices issued by the financial stability board. we support the idea of aligning compensation with appropriate risktaking. as the core issue is the holistic management of risks across the institution, mas will, in our implementation of these

individual consent to ensure that the use of data is properly authorised. these mechanisms must also ensure transparency in the use of data – that data will be used and shared in accordance with the purposes for which it has been provided and in a manner that is expected and understood by individuals. third, payments interoperability. some form of payment is integral to most digital transactions. to facilitate seamless payments in both digital - to - digital and digital - to - physical environments, we need common payment rails or networks to enable inter - operability across payment solutions. fourth, data exchange. individuals and businesses must be able to digitally access all their relevant data and make them available to third party service providers who can then serve these individuals and business in a holistic manner. this could be for purposes of financial planning, trade financing, credit scoring, etc. where data aggregation is important for more customised and comprehensive solutioning. when these foundational digital infrastructures come together, they will have the power to deliver truly end - to - end digital transactions. take for example, cross - border digital payments. with the four foundational digital infrastructures working in concert, we can effectively tackle the big pain points in know - your - customer checks, sanctions screening, and exchange of documents, to enable cheaper, faster and secure payments. singapore has implemented these four foundational digital infrastructures. singaporeans can use their national digital identity – singpass mobile – to transact digitally with both the government and the private sector using singpass mobile, singaporeans can make available relevant verified information to allow banks to onboard them without the need for paper documentation or physical presence. singapore ’ s retail payments infrastructure – fast and paynow – has made digital payments interoperable. singaporeans can now move money to one another ’ s bank accounts in real - time and at zero cost, with just three clicks on their mobile phones, regardless of which bank app they use. the singapore financial data exchange – sgfindex – is a pioneering data exchange platform, the first of its kind in the world. sgfindex uses the national digital identity and a centrally managed online consent system to enable singaporeans to access their financial information held across different government agencies and financial institutions. singaporeans can seamlessly consolidate their financial information, and use digital tools to make holistic financial planning decisions. 2 / 3 bis central bankers'speeches singapore is now looking at how our digital infrastructures can be made interoperable and connected with the rest of