Electronic Payments
Timeline to eliminate corporate cheques
28 July 2023
MAS announced that all corporate cheques will be eliminated by end-2025 while individuals will still be able to use cheques for a period after 2025. With cheque usage in Singapore falling steadily, the cost of processing each cheque has been rising. To recover these cheque processing costs, banks have commenced charging for Singapore Dollar denominated cheques by 1 November 2023.
Regional Payment Connectivity (RPC) expansion to include State Bank of Vietnam, Brunei Darussalam Central Bank, Bank of Lao PDR
25 August 2023
State Bank of Vietnam, Brunei Darussalam Central Bank and Bank of the Lao PDR have joined the RPC initiative. This expands on the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in RPC that was initiated by the central banks of Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand at the sidelines of the G20 Leaders’ Summit held on 14 November 2022 in Bali.
Launch of SGQR+ Proof of Concept to enhance interoperability for QR payments
31 October 2023
MAS launched a proof of concept (POC) for an interoperable Singapore Quick Response Code Scheme (SGQR+). The POC, conducted from 1 to 30 November 2023, explored the feasibility of enabling merchants in Singapore to accept QR payments from a variety of payment schemes through a single financial institution. The results of the POC will be detailed later in a report and will inform the public on the viability of deploying SGQR+ on a larger scale.
Launch of cross-border real-time payment systems connectivity between Singapore and Malaysia
17 November 2023
MAS and Bank Negara Malaysia launched the real-time payment systems linkage between Singapore’s PayNow and Malaysia’s DuitNow at the SFF 2023. The linkage enables instant, seamless, secure and cost-effective person-to-person fund transfers and remittances between the two countries. This real-time payment systems linkage is the first to include the participation of non-bank financial institutions from both countries, providing access to a broader group of users.
Launch of cross-border QR payment linkage between Singapore and Indonesia
17 November 2023
MAS and Bank Indonesia launched the cross-border quick response (QR) payment linkage between Singapore’s NETS and Indonesia’s Quick Response Code Indonesian Standard (QRIS) at the SFF 2023. The linkage enables seamless and secure cross-border retail payments to merchants, allowing customers to use their existing mobile banking applications to scan QRIS or NETS QR codes in Indonesia and Singapore respectively.
MAS raised e-wallet regulatory limits
15 December 2023
MAS raised the e-wallet limits to allow users of e-wallets issued by Major Payment Institutions (MPIs) to hold up to S$20,000 (up from S$5,000) in their wallets at any point in time and spend up to an annual limit of S$100,000 (up from S$30,000). In adopting higher limits, MPIs are expected to implement comprehensive anti-scam measures commensurate with the higher scam risks. The higher limits will improve convenience for users, and facilitate use cases such as travel spending and overseas remittance while keeping the estimated financial stability impact manageable.