The Monetary Authority of Singapore alongside leading financial bodies jointly announced a relief package for the city-state.
The announcement was jointly made with the Association of Banks in Singapore, the Life Insurance Association, the General Insurance Association and the Finance Houses Association of Singapore. The relief package focuses on three components: individual support, SME support and the health of the interbank funding market.
«It is heartening to see our banks, insurers, and finance companies coming together to support their customers through this difficult time,» said MAS managing director Ravi Menon in the statement, highlighting strong balance sheets as the reason that local banks will ride out the economic storm and provide relief.
Brace for Recession
The joint announcement listed a series of measures covering payment deferrals and lowered rates for bank loans and insurance premiums targeting both retail and SME clients.
The new announcement follows MAS’s recent policy statement which underlined its predictions for a 2020 recession. Whilst it sees no immediate inflation risk, job losses and slower wage growth are to be expected.
«The package of measures they have put together speaks of a financial industry in Singapore that is robust, responsible, and purposeful,» Menon added. «These measures will complement the government’s broader fiscal initiatives and help the Singapore economy recover more quickly and emerge stronger when the pandemic passes – as it surely must.»
