trade execution and price discovery in fx https : / / www. mas. gov. sg / news / speeches / 2021 / riding - the - growth - momentum - in - asia 3 / 11 12 / 02 / 2021 " riding the growth momentum in asia " – keynote speech by ms jacqueline loh, deputy managing director ( markets & development ), … during asian trading hours, a move that will bring about better execution, lower cost of trading, and greater transparency for market participants. key global and regional sell - side and buy - side players, as well as e - trading platforms, have anchored their regional pricing and matching engines here, and have seen early successes. global liquidity providers that have completed the set - up of their pricing and trading engines in singapore provided feedback that trade - fill ratios have improved, from about 80 % to near 100 %. notably, when fx market volatility reached multiyear highs in march last year amidst the covid - 19 pandemic, the robust e - trading infrastructure in singapore was able to tide regional market participants over the storm, with relatively good execution. we seek to enhance singapore ’ s value proposition as a full - service international fund management and domiciliation hub. the variable capital companies ( vcc ) framework provides fund managers with a wider suite of investment fund vehicles and potential cost savings from centralising fund management and domiciliation activities, whilst providing new business opportunities for fund managers, service providers and fund advisors. the vcc has seen strong industry adoption, with close to 200 vccs set up in its first year, for a diverse range of traditional and alternative investment strategies. in the bond markets, singapore ’ s strong ecosystem of buy - side and sell - side institutions, alongside professional service providers, provides a robust gateway for international capital to be channelled to asian borrowers. to strengthen our value proposition as asia ’ s leading bond centre and building on the success of the asian bond grant scheme [ 10 ], we launched the global - asia bond grant scheme [ 11 ] in 2020, which defrays issuance - related expenses for companies with an asian nexus. in particular, a new funding tier for jumbosized issuances was introduced, with a doubling of the maximum grant amount from s $ 400, 000 to s $ 800, 000 per issuance for these issuances. in insurance, we aim to be a global capital for asian risk transfer, [UNK] a wide spectrum of risk financing solutions that

half of 2021. the world bank forecasts global growth at 4. 0 % this year ; with growth in east asia at 5. 9 %. asean economies are expected to expand by 5. 0 % in 2021, also surpassing the performance of regions beyond asia. 4. there are however, still considerable uncertainties on the horizon. these include the course of the pandemic, progress on vaccination, the possibility of governments mistiming the withdrawal of policy support, and the evolution of us - china trade and investment relations. 5. the pandemic is also likely to have lasting economic [UNK] beyond 2021, including postponed investments, the negative impact of sustained job losses on human capital, global supply chain reconfigurations that emphasise resilience over [UNK], and high public and private debt levels. these [UNK] will further threaten potential growth in economies globally. 6. however, asian economies are poised to overcome these challenges. our growth model which comprises deep international integration, investment in human capital, and sound economic governance has helped us weather past crises and will continue to serve us well. the digitalisation of the regional economy also [UNK] immense opportunities. it is facilitating the growth of emerging industries such as e - commerce and expanding access to the vast east asian market for non - traded goods. 7. in the medium term, asia ’ s outlook is positive. in the next five years, the imf projects 5. 2 % average annual growth for the region, compared to 3. 2 % for the rest of the world. by 2025, asia ’ s share of global gdp is expected to reach 38 %, up from 26 % 20 years ago. financial markets in asia – sharing the growth story 8. asian financial markets have grown in tandem with the asian economic growth trajectory. the region ’ s equity markets account for about 40 % of global equity market capitalisation, doubling its share over the last 20 years ; the growth of asia ’ s bond markets has been phenomenal, with annual issuance volume rising 9 - fold [ 6 ] in 20 years, and accounts for about a quarter of annual global bond issuance volumes today ; https : / / www. mas. gov. sg / news / speeches / 2021 / riding - the - growth - momentum - in - asia 2 / 11 12 / 02 / 2021 " riding the growth momentum in asia " – keynote speech by ms jacqueline loh, deputy managing director ( markets & development ), … capital inflows to