Britain and Singapore will help each others financial technology firms and investors gain access to their respective markets, the two sides said. A "fintech bridge" between the two countries will help British firms do business in the Asian market while attracting Singaporean fintech companies and investors to Britain.
Britain's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore signed a cooperation agreement that sets out how the regulators plan to share and use information on financial services innovation in their respective markets, a statement said on Wednesday. Britain has become the global fintech capital with more people working in the industry than in New York, or in the combined fintech workforce of Singapore, Hong Kong and Australia, a recent report by consultancy firm EY showed.
British fintech generated 6.6 billion pounds ($9.53 billion)of revenue in 2015 and has a workforce of over 60,000 employees, according to the statement. Singapore has also been bidding to position itself as one of Asia's top locations for the technology start-ups that aim to compete with traditional banking and financial services.
"(The fintech bridge) will support fintech innovators who wish to use Singapore as a base for collaboration and as a gateway to other markets in Asia," said Jacqueline Loh, deputy managing director of the Singapore regulator MAS. "The agreement between the MAS and FCA will also create opportunities for Singapore-based companies to grow and scale into the UK market.