Singapore, 12 June 2019… The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Enterprise Singapore and the National Research Foundation (NRF) today announced that the Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) and the Singapore Week of Innovation and TeCHnology (SWITCH) would come together as SFF x SWITCH to synergise across the themes of FinTech and Deep Tech. SFF x SWITCH will run from 11 to 15 November 2019.  

2.     SFF x SWITCH will bring insights from global thought leaders, showcase innovative solutions, and engage entrepreneurs, investors and innovators from around the world. It will also provide rich networking opportunities for participants to collaborate on technological innovation across five key sectors – FinTech, Urban Solutions and Sustainability, Health and Biomedical Sciences, Advanced Manufacturing and Engineering, and Digital Services. Participants can look forward to the following key events.

3.     Participants can gain access to the three-day Conference & Exhibition of both events, which will take place from 11 to 13 November 2019 at the Singapore Expo. The Conference will feature for the first time the theme of sustainability, and cover Financial Services; Industry 4.0 – Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain, Cloud and Cybersecurity; Financial Inclusion; Green Finance; and Technology Beyond Finance. The Exhibition will feature country pavilions, industry exhibitors, financial industry showcase booths, and a startup zone.

4.     There will be three Competitions for the global innovation community:

• Global FinTech Hackcelerator, which matches innovative startup solutions to address industry’s problem statements; 
• SLINGSHOT 2019, an international startup pitching competition; and
• FinTech Awards, which recognises innovative financial technology solutions.
  Finalists from the competitions will showcase their solutions at SFF x SWITCH.

5.     Investors and companies can have access to two Deal-Making Platforms:

• Deal Fridays, curated deal-making sessions for facilitating investment into startups, that will run every Friday from 21 June to 25 October 2019; and
• TechInnovation, a technology-to-industry matching marketplace which facilitates business matching within the industry, seeds licensing opportunities and fosters open innovation collaborations.

6.     On 14 and 15 November 2019, workshops and events designed for the tech industry and an expanded Innovation Lab Crawl will take place at various locations across the island.

7.     Mr Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer, MAS, said, “The Singapore FinTech Festival is the world’s largest FinTech gathering and a marquee event for the global FinTech community. Our partnership with SWITCH this year allows us to engage technology ecosystems beyond FinTech, and to present a comprehensive showcase of innovations that benefit all segments of society. We look forward to welcoming players from the FinTech and wider technology community from all over the world to Singapore, to connect, collaborate, and celebrate innovation.”

8.     Mr Peter Ong, Chairman, Enterprise Singapore said, “SFF x SWITCH is the foremost platform to bring together tech communities and startups around the world to bridge the gap between technology and finance for deep tech and FinTech. Singapore hosts a vibrant community of innovation enablers, enterprises and startups to drive co-innovation of new solutions relevant to global needs and modern challenges. Our strong connectivity to the region will serve as a gateway for enterprises and market-driven solutions to reach Asia and beyond.”

9.     Dr Cheong Wei Yang, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, NRF, said, “This collaboration between SWITCH and the Singapore FinTech Festival will consolidate our national efforts to create value from science and technology – starting from the capabilities built in our research base, through to innovation and commercialisation by our enterprises.  We will focus on deep tech areas relevant to Singapore’s growth as a Global-Asia node of technology, innovation and enterprise.  We are excited to see more researchers, entrepreneurs, investors and companies coming together from all around the world, to benefit society and economy through innovation in new business models and novel technologies.”

10.     Singapore FinTech Festival is organised by MAS, in partnership with The Association of Banks in Singapore, and in collaboration with SingEx Holdings. SWITCH is organised by Enterprise Singapore, NRF, and Intellectual Property Intermediary (IPI).  Last year, the two events together drew close to 57,000 delegates from almost 130 countries.  For more information on SFF x SWITCH 2019, please see the attached factsheet or visit www.SFFxSWITCH.com . 

***

About the Monetary Authority of Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is Singapore’s central bank and integrated financial regulator. As central bank, MAS promotes sustained, non-inflationary economic growth through the conduct of monetary policy and close macroeconomic surveillance and analysis. It manages Singapore’s exchange rate, official foreign reserves, and liquidity in the banking sector. As an integrated financial supervisor, MAS fosters a sound financial services sector through its prudential oversight of all financial institutions in Singapore – banks, insurers, capital market intermediaries, financial advisors, and stock exchanges. It is also responsible for well-functioning financial markets, sound conduct, and investor education. MAS also works with the financial industry to promote Singapore as a dynamic international financial centre. It facilitates the development of infrastructure, adoption of technology, and upgrading of skills in the financial industry.

About Enterprise Singapore 
Enterprise Singapore is the government agency championing enterprise development. We work with committed companies to build capabilities, innovate and internationalise.

We also support the growth of Singapore as a hub for global trading and startups, and build trust in Singapore’s products and services through quality and standards.

Visit www.enterprisesg.gov.sg for more information.

About the National Research Foundation, Prime Minister's Office, Singapore
The National Research Foundation (NRF) is a department within the Prime Minister's Office.  The NRF sets the national direction for research, innovation and enterprise (RIE) in Singapore. It seeks to invest in science, technology and engineering, build up the technological capacity of our companies, encourage innovation by industry to exploit new growth areas, and facilitate public-private partnerships to address national challenges.  Under RIE2020, NRF is committed to create greater value in Singapore from our investment in research, innovation and enterprise through 1) closer integration of research thrusts, 2) stronger dynamic towards the best teams and ideas, 3) sharper focus on value creation, and 4) better optimised RIE manpower. Visit www.nrf.gov.sg/RIE2020 for more details.

About Singapore FinTech Festival
Singapore FinTech Festival (SFF) is the world’s largest FinTech event and a global platform for the FinTech community, drawing close to 45,000 participants comprising FinTech players, technopreneurs, policy makers, financial industry leaders, investors including private equity players and venture capitalists, and academics. The 2018 Festival saw participants from over 127 countries, hosted more than 250 global luminaries and 480 exhibitors, and featured highlights such as the FinTech Conference with a new AI in Finance Summit and Global Investors’ Summit, the FinTech Awards, Global FinTech Hackcelerator, Innovation Lab Crawl and Industry Networking and Workshops. The Festival is organised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in partnership with The Association of Banks in Singapore and in collaboration with SingEx Holdings. Find out more at http://fintechfestival.sg .

About SWITCH
Organised by Enterprise Singapore, NRF and IPI, SWITCH is a platform where scientific discoveries and advancements are transformed into disruptive technology applications that will redefine the way we live. It focuses on deep tech applications in the areas of manufacturing, urban solutions, health and biomedical sciences and digital services.

SWITCH is where companies identify new technologies for business transformation and where collaborations are formed. It convenes entrepreneurs, investors, researchers, innovator and industry professionals from diverse backgrounds. Find out more at http://www.switchsg.org/ .