Singapore, 19 Jan 2004...The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) today issued the Banking (Credit Card and Charge Card) Regulations 2004, pursuant to section 78(2) of the Banking Act.

Since 1983, MAS has imposed various guidelines on the operations of credit and charge card issuers. The guidelines serve to prevent excessive expansion of consumer credit and discourage individuals from spending beyond their means.  As part of MAS' on-going process to enhance regulatory transparency and for ease of reference, we have now consolidated these guidelines into a comprehensive set of regulations.   The minimum income requirement of S$30,000 per annum and the maximum credit limit of two months' income remain unchanged.

The regulations will supercede the existing guidelines and Banking (Unsolicited Credit and Charge Cards) Regulations with effect from 19 Feb 2004. The regulations are available on the MAS website (http://sitecore.mas.gov.sg/Regulations-and-Financial-Stability/Regulations-Guidance-and-Licensing/Commercial-Banks/Subsidiary-Legislation.aspx ).

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