Singapore and Thailand to Link Payments Infrastructures

This linkage between the two countries’ national faster payment systems will be the first-of-its-kind in the world.

Cross-border remittances between Singapore and Thailand will become cheaper and faster with the linkage of Singapore's PayNow and Thailand's PayPrompt.

The linkage will go live in mid-2021, following three years of work between the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Bank of Thailand, MAS managing director Ravi Menon announced in a speech at the second day of the Singapore Fintech Festival 2020.

The program will start off with a small group of banks on both sides, and will scale up to include more banks and non-bank providers over time. MAS is keen to help other central banks in the region to expand the linkage, so that more people across Southeast Asia can benefit, Menon said.

Building Inclusivity

In his speech, Menon noted how the ongoing pandemic has «laid bare the inequalities in our societies,» and highlighted how fintech can be used as a force for good, discussing pervasive electronic payments, affordable cross-border remittances, timely health insurance claims and holistic financial planning.

Menon also discussed how Singapore can support Asia's transition towards sustainability: growing the Asian carbon credit market, using MAS' Green Finance Action Plan, and using fintech to enable sustainable finance flows.

Green Finance

To this end, MAS announced the launch of Project Greenprint - a technology platform aimed at promoting a green financial ecosystem by mobilizing capital, monitoring commitment and measuring impact.

MAS will also earmark 20 percent of the Financial Sector Technology and Innovation budget, or $37 million out of $185 million, to support Green Fintech projects.