The Private Banking Industry Group issued a statement denying reports that Singapore’s regulator has told banks to avoid discussing the origins of wealth inflows.
The Private Banking Industry Group (PBIG ) said that the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has not issued any directive for banks to avoid discussing the origin of wealth inflows into the city-state, according to a statement.
The statement is a response to a recent «Financial Times» report that claimed that the local regulator had told banks to keep such discussions to a minimum as the topic had become a politically sensitive issue. An unnamed banker in the report said that it was «obvious» the MAS was referring to inflows from China.
Diversified Sources
According to PBIG, fund flows into Singapore came from a mix of various origins.
«At its most recent meeting on 20 February 2023, the PBIG noted that while public commentary tended to focus on fund flows from China into Singapore, the sources of overall inflows into Singapore in fact remain diversified,» the industry group said. «The increased fund flows into Singapore were from high net worth individuals from different markets.»
At the meeting, which is held three times per year, discussions also covered money laundering and terrorism financing risks as well as the deployment of wealth into «purposeful causes», like philanthropy, to benefit Singapore and the region.
