Fintech's «disruptive innovation» conjures up images of chaos for most people, Sopnendu Mohanty of the Monetary Authority of Singapore tells finews.asia – because most innovators are too far ahead of their time.
Sopnendu Mohanty, what was your first encounter with fintech?
I got involved in fintech when I was in charge of innovation at Citibank in 2014. I saw many bright young entrepreneurs with good ideas. They had great solutions, but the banks’ architecture and processes made it difficult to integrate with these solutions.
This is a wider structural issue globally, and also a great opportunity for Singapore. If we successfully build a flourishing ecosystem in this state of global fragility, Singapore will be an oasis for fintechs, with tremendous economic impact and benefits for Singapore.
Where do you draw the line between preventing and facilitating innovations?
There is a perception that innovation has a dark side, and the term «disruptive innovation» conjures up images of chaos and upheaval. But most innovators have good ideas, and are looking to improve lives. The reason they face problems is that some of their ideas are too ahead of their time.
«These ideas may be in conflict with our policies»
The challenge for regulators is how to strike the right balance between ensuring financial stability, protecting consumers and futuristic ideas, and not preventing innovations. These ideas may be in conflict with our existing policies, so we look at harmonizing innovation with our policies, and in doing so, provide stability to the entire fintech ecosystem.
What did it take to put Singapore on the fintech map?
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