Fintech Solidarity Grant aims to support Singapore fintech firms

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Singapore FinTech Association (SFA), AMTD Group and AMTD Foundation (collectively, AMTD) have launched the S$6 million MAS-SFA-AMTD FinTech Solidarity Grant to support Singapore-based fintech firms in the challenging business climate.

The grant will help fintech firms maintain their operations,and enable them to continue to innovate and grow. It complements the S$125 million support package announced by MAS on 8 April 2020 to sustain and strengthen capabilities in the financial services and fintech sectors.

AMTD has provided an initial S$2 million to support the Singapore fintech ecosystem. MAS will provide an additional S$4 million from the Financial Sector Development Fund*, taking the total grant amount to S$6 million.

The grant comprises two components:

 S$1.5million Business Sustenance Grant (BSG)

Eligible Singapore-based fintech firms can receive a one-time grant for up to S$20,000 to cover day-to-day working capital expenditures, such as salaries and rental costs. The BSG is fully funded by AMTD’s contribution.

 S$4.5 million Business Growth Grant (BGG)

The BGG is jointly supported by AMTD and MAS. Eligible Singapore-based fintech firms can receive up to S$40,000 for their first proof of concept (POC) with financial institutions on the API Exchange (APIX)** platform, and S$10,000 for each subsequent POC, subject to a total cap of S$80,000 per firm for the entire duration of the grant.

In addition, the BGG will provide funding for the salaries of undergraduate interns, capped at S$1,000/month per intern.T his grant will support around 120 interns in the fintech sector, assuming an average internship duration of 3 to 5 months.

SFA will administer and review the grant applications. Chia Hock Lai, President, SFA said, “Fintech firms are in a great position to seize opportunities presented by the accelerated trend towards digital financing induced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Business Sustenance Grant helps fintech firms to plug their short term financing gaps while Business Growth Grant enables them to grow and sell through the APIX platform. These will help save jobs while making our fintech firms competitive for the post COVID-19 economic recovery world.”

Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of MAS said, “There is a surge in demand in the financial services industry around the region for solutions to address the need for remote digital services amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Fintech firms have a great opportunity to step up actively during this period to provide these solutions.

"The Business Growth Grant will help fintech firms offset their costs. By conducting their POCs on APIX, financial institutions and fintech firms will not need to set up test infrastructure for integration. This will help accelerate project development while still working remotely.”

Calvin Choi, Chairman and CEO of AMTD Group, and Founder and Chairman of AMTD Foundation, said, “As an active financial institution focusing in the Asian region, we see the immediate need for the private sector to foster closer partnership with fintech firms to formulate tailormade solutions to cater for the increasing demand for digital services and greater opportunities to scale up.

"This is an important moment in time to overcome challenges while identifying every opportunity and client servicing angle through proactive collaboration with the APIX platform to achieve fintech success and FI transformation. The Business Sustenance Grant and the Business Growth Grant provide a holistic solution to ensure sustainability and growth opportunities for fintech firms during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

The SFA is a cross-industry and non-profit organisation which supports the development of the fintech industry in Singapore, and facilitates collaboration among the participants and stakeholders of the fintech ecosystem in Singapore. It has over 350 members.

Through their FinTech Talent (FT) Programme, launched in 2017, over 300 professionals have been trained in fintech, including Blockchain, cryptocurrency, cybersecurity and regulations.

The AMTD Group is a financial services-focused conglomerate with businesses in investment banking, asset management, and digital financial solutions. Its non-financial services include education and real estate.

AMTD International, a subsidiary of the AMTD Group, comprises the largest independent investment bank in Asia and one of Asia’s largest independent asset management companies, and has been a leading investor in fintech and the new economy sector. AMTD Digital, the digital arm of AMTD Group, is a digital solutions-connected platform with Singapore as its headquarters. AMTD Digital covers digital financial services and solutions, digital connectors and ecosystems, digital marketing and data intelligence, and digital investments.

AMTD Foundation, a charitable organisation founded by Choi, promotes education, relieves poverty, and supports people in need in Asia and across the world.

AMTD has entered into strategic partnerships with The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the University of Waterloo in Canada respectively, for the establishment of the AMTD FinTech Centre of PolyU Faculty of Business and AMTD Waterloo Global Talent Postdoctoral Fellowships. It has also established a long-term partnership to develop the Singapore Digital Finance Leadership Programme with Xiaomi Finance, Singapore Management University (SMU) and the Institute of Systems Science (ISS) at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Recently, AMTD  partnered with the  Singapore FinTech Association to announce an AMTD Global FinTech Fellowship programme to anchor and support fintech talents’ development post COVID-19 and beyond.

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. 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.

Details:

Fintech firms can apply for both BSG and BGG if they fulfil the eligibility criteria for both grants.

Check eligibility criteria. Applications are open until 31 December 2021.

*The Financial Sector Development Fund (FSDF) is established under the MAS Act to promote Singapore as a financial centre. The FSDF provides funding to support: skills development and upgrading;research and development programmes; and industry projects and infrastructure, for the Singapore financial services sector.

**The API Exchange (APIX) is a cross-border, open-architecture API platform that serves as a global marketplace for financial institutions, regulators, supervisors, central banks and FinTechs to connect with one another. APIX also provides a sandbox to design experiments collaboratively, and deploy innovative solutions easily via a cloud-based architecture.

APIX is a flagship product of the ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN), a non-profit entity formed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, International Finance Corporation, a member of the World Bank Group, and the ASEAN Bankers Association, with the objectives of supporting financial innovation and inclusion around the world.