Ant Financial and Xiaomi among 21 applicants for Singapore digital bank licence
- Monetary Authority of Singapore said that it had received 21 applications – seven for retail banks and 14 for wholesale banks
- Singapore’s central bank plans to issue up to five licences – two retail and three wholesale – in June this year
Ant Financial Services and a consortium that includes Hong Kong-listed smartphone maker Xiaomi are among those who have bid for digital bank licences in Singapore, intensifying a rivalry between Hong Kong and the city state to promote fintech-related financial services.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said on Tuesday that it had received 21 applications – seven for retail banks and 14 for wholesale banks.
The MAS will announce the winners in June, exactly a year after announcing its biggest banking liberalisation in decades. Singapore’s central bank plans to issue up to five licences – two retail and three wholesale licences – with the banks expected to start operations in mid-2021.
The bids from Ant Financial and Xiaomi, which won virtual bank licences in Hong Kong last year, show their ambitions in expanding in the region. Ant Bank (Hong Kong) will start operating later this year.
The MAS’ move comes after the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the city’s de facto central bank, issued eight virtual bank licences last year. This shows that the two cities are competing with each other to promote fintech by bringing in new players to inject new technology and business models in the banking sector.