Payments
Payments licensees and approved holders offer a range of payment services in Singapore. Payment systems facilitate the transfer of funds between or among participants. Find out about the designation, licensing, regulations and guidance for these entities.
Designation and Licensing
Payments Licensees and Approved Holders
MAS currently regulates persons that provide these payment services:
- Holders of Stored Value Facilities (SVFs) are regulated under the Payment Systems (Oversight) Act (PS(O)A) .
- Money-Changers and Remittance Businesses are licensed and regulated under the Money-Changing and Remittance Businesses Act (MCRBA) . Find out about:
With the changing payment services landscape, a new Payment Services Bill was passed in Parliament on 14 January 2019 to streamline payment services under a single legislation. Under the Payment Services Act 2019 (PS Act), payment service providers will only need to hold one licence to conduct specified payment activities. The scope of regulation has also been expanded to include payment services such as digital payment token services and merchant acquisition. MAS conducted public consultations to solicit feedback on the payments regulatory framework and subsidiary legislation under the PS Act.
The PS(O)A and MCRBA will be repealed upon the commencement of the new PS Act, which will apply to payment services licensees. You may wish to refer to the FAQs on the PS Act for further guidance.
Payment Systems
The Payment Systems (Oversight) Act (PS(O)A) empowers MAS to collect information from all payment systems in Singapore to monitor the development of the payment system industry in Singapore and make informed policy decisions. MAS may designate a payment system under the PS(O)A if it is considered a systemically important payment system or a system-wide important payment system, or where it is otherwise in the public interest to do so.
In addition, MAS may designate important payment systems under the Payment and Settlement Systems (Finality and Netting) Act (FNA) to ensure that these systems continue to function smoothly during times of disruption. Specifically, the FNA ensures the finality and irrevocability of transactions made through these systems by “carving out” the relevant insolvency rules.
The PS(O)A will be repealed upon the commencement of the new Payment Services Act 2019, which will apply to designated payment systems.
Find out about the various payment systems supervised by MAS.
Regulations and Guidance
MAS is governed by the MAS Act, which confers on it powers to issue legal instruments for regulation and supervision of financial institutions.
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Regulatory Submissions
Risk Management
Resources
Payment and Settlement Systems External Publications - Access publications from external providers, including the BIS and EMEAP.
H1 2019 Retail Payment Statistics (372.1 KB) - Access statistics for selected payment systems in Singapore
FAQs on the Payment Services Act - Access the FAQs on the Payment Services Act
What's New
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Guidance to Enhance Operational Controls in Payments and Electronic Funds Transfer Operations
Sets out MAS’ supervisory expectations on management oversight, system controls and detection capabilities.
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Payment Services (Singapore Dollar Cheque Clearing System and Inter-bank Giro System) Regulations 2019
These Regulations set out the requirements for the Singapore Dollar Cheque Clearing System and Inter-bank Giro System.
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Payment Services (Saving and Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2019
These Regulations provide for the saving and transitional arrangements for entities regulated under the Payment Services Act.
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Payment Services (Exemption for Specified Period) Regulations 2019
These Regulations set out exemptions that are applicable during certain transitional periods from the commencement of the Payment Services Act.
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Payment Services Regulations 2019
These Regulations apply to all entities regulated under the Payment Services Act and set out licensing and other ongoing requirements. Exemptions from certain requirements of the Act can also be found in these Regulations.