The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) today announced a S$220 (US$ 173) million commitment over three years under the renewed Financial Sector Technology and Innovation Scheme (FSTI 4.0) to strengthen Singapore’s FinTech ecosystem and accelerate innovation and technology adoption across the financial sector.
FSTI 4.0 is designed around four goals: to anchor firms and scale innovative activities, to accelerate the development, adoption and deployment of financial technologies with a focus on frontier technologies, to develop technology infrastructure, and to support talent development and attraction.
The scheme delivers this through six tracks, of which two include quantum technology push:
1) Centre of Excellence (CoE)
The Centre of Excellence (CoE) track seeks to attract high-potential international financial institutions, FinTech scale-ups and global technology companies to establish innovation centres in Singapore, and to deepen existing firms’ presence by anchoring their research and development (R&D) functions locally.
Applicant Eligibility
The track is open to financial institutions, FinTech scale-ups and global technology companies with a strong nexus to financial services, which intend to establish, expand or relocate an innovation function to Singapore. The CoE should be focused on specific emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Distributed Ledger Technology, and Quantum Technology.
Project Eligibility
Team composition
- Led by an individual of sufficient seniority (e.g. head of technology/innovation/venture) to anchor senior internal sponsor in Singapore.
- The CoE team should also consist minimally of 2 senior professionals (e.g. business-centric lead, technical lead, design architect, etc., excluding general administrative and IT staff such as programmers).
Innovation focus/Novelty of solutions
- CoE set up in Singapore should lead the rollout of innovative market solutions (in the specific emerging technologies listed above) for the Singapore market and beyond. Applicants should demonstrate that their solutions have clear potential to scale beyond a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) towards broader deployment across the organisation.
- Proposed focus areas of innovation should also be consistent and aligned with MAS’ developmental strategy and objectives for the financial sector.
Sustainability of the CoE
- Applicants should demonstrate credible long-term plans for the CoE beyond the funding period, to minimise the risks of applicants’ closure of the CoE soon after FSDF funding ceases.
Workforce impact assessment
- If the project is expected to result in potential disruption to the existing workforce, the applicant should also provide a preliminary assessment on the broad nature and scale of such disruption.
Funding support
- Up to 50% and 25% funding support level on manpower expenses for qualifying roles for SCs and non-SCs (including Permanent Residents (PRs)) respectively, for a period of 24 months.
- Up to 50% funding support level on non-manpower expense. Funding for rental of office space will only be extended to non-FI CoEs that do not have a presence in Singapore. For avoidance of doubt, FI-run CoEs are not eligible for rental expense even if they do not have a presence in Singapore.
2) Institution Project
The Institution Project track seeks to catalyse the development, adoption and deployment of proprietary, innovative solutions by financial institutions and FinTechs, with a focus on frontier technologies. It serves as an adaptable framework for institution-level innovation, initially focused on three priority themes – Artificial Intelligence, Distributed Ledger Technology, and Quantum Technology – helping firms move decisively from experimentation to deployment and keeping Singapore’s financial sector at the technological frontier.
Applicant Eligibility
This track is open to Singapore-based financial institutions (FIs) and FinTechs. Each applicant is limited to a maximum of two applications under the track over the scheme period.
Project Eligibility
Projects should involve innovative solutions aligned with at least one of MAS’ focus areas:
- Artificial Intelligence (AI);
- Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT); or
- Quantum Technology (QT).
Projects should demonstrate significant business impact, technical feasibility, and innovativeness of the solution. Routine digitalisation efforts, such as the implementation of off-the-shelf solutions, or projects that primarily improve process efficiency, are not eligible for funding.
Where a project may disrupt the existing workforce, applicants should provide a preliminary assessment of the nature and scale of such disruption.
Funding Support
- Up to 50% of qualifying expenses, capped at maximum grant quantum of S$1 million.
- Funding period of up to 24 months.
- Qualifying expenses include manpower (base salaries), professional services, hardware/software infrastructure, subscriptions and licences, IP rights, and external auditor’s certification.
