, a regulatory framework for this specialized area of insurance. we will be seeking feedback from local industry on this. the government recently announced the launch of eldershield, a national long - term care insurance scheme to be underwritten by private insurance companies. eldershield provides a basic level of benefits, which many singaporeans will wish to supplement. this will create opportunities for insurers to structure and market appropriate long - term care policies. credit insurance and political risk insurance are two other promising areas. globalisation and lower barriers to cross - border trade will spur continued internationalization of trade and support strong demand for credit and political risk insurance. being located in asia, a region that has traditionally witnessed strong trade flows, singapore is wellplaced to develop further as a hub for such activity. several new specialist insurers and brokers have in recent months set up a presence in singapore, including financial guarantee insurers and trade credit insurers and brokers. another growing area of business is bancassurance activity. life insurance products sold through the bancassurance channel now account for 25 % of new life insurance business. two new specialist bancassurance players have established operations in singapore, and contributed significantly to this trend. increasing resilience amidst these new opportunities, more than ever, we now need to strengthen the resilience of the insurance industry. the mas has for some time, been working with the insurance and reinsurance industry to raise standards of corporate governance, internal controls and professionalism. many of our companies are already at international best practice standards. however, as in all countries, practices vary, and we aim to have all our insurers to attain best practice standards by 2005 if not earlier. risk - based supervision in 1998, mas embarked on a strategic change in our regulatory philosophy. we moved from a bottomup, audit - based inspection approach to a top - down, risk - based supervisory approach. this approach, being prospective in nature, is well suited to today's world of new and increased risks. risk - based supervision evaluates the major risks faced by an institution and assesses how well these risks are being mitigated. this will help both regulators and companies to identify and, importantly, to pre - empt problems. well - managed institutions will be given greater flexibility, while less well - managed ones will be subject to closer scrutiny. singapore's risk - based supervisory framework for insurers the basic framework for risk - based supervision

a platform for industry players to gain greater understanding of fintech applications and developments as well as support innovative solutions to find commercialisation opportunities. • sgx is also working with licensed private market platforms to facilitate the listing process for portfolio companies. such platforms provide pe / vc managers with opportunities to invest or exit, and provide a pipeline of companies that could list on sgx. such private - public markets partnerships can serve as an engine of growth for our public markets and provide support for enterprises throughout their corporate lifecycle. 28 đ đ in keeping up with changes in our public markets, such as the rise of neweconomy start - ups and technology firms, exchanges have continued to innovate to provide product owerings that support the varying needs of these companies. • for example, sgx has joined global exchanges in canada, europe, and the us, in introducing the dual class share ( dcs ) structure to support firms which have shares with diwerent voting rights to raise funds. dcs listings will broaden the range of investment options for investors and add vibrancy to singapore ’ s capital markets and capital markets globally. 29 đ đ with the recognition that public markets play an important and key role in our entrepreneurial ecosystem by providing public financing for growing companies, mas will continue to support growth in public equity markets. • mas has committed s $ 75 million over three years to help companies list and raise equity capital on sgx and support initiatives that broaden and deepen our research ecosystem. this will help to mitigate the growing and global phenomena of shrinking research coverage and build up our capabilities in covering public markets. conclusion 30 đ đ in conclusion, as we move into a changing world with a less certain global order, rapidly advancing technology, and increasing threats and opportunities, it will be even more important for exchanges and clearing houses to keep pace with global trends and be ready to adapt. this will ensure that you are wellplaced to navigate challenges and remain relevant to the evolving needs of our financial markets. 31 đ đ the wfe, in continuing to advance a collective voice for the improvement of our public markets, will be an important contributor to global discussions with regulators on how our public markets are shaped for the future. the wfe ’ s ongoing eworts in advancing the sustainability agenda for exchanges and clearing houses, is testament to the leadership and contributions it has presented since its founding in 1961. 32 đ đ i wish you a fruitful general assembly and annual meeting in singapore.