The Monetary Authority of Singapore's latest move is part of a broader effort to place itself at the forefront of fintech and regtech.

Singapore's financial regulator will next month launch a data analytics group as it seeks to use technology to make regulatory compliance for financial institutions more efficient. 

The Monetary Authority of Singapore's Data Analytics Group, which launches 15 March, will harness the power of data analytics to unlock insights, enhance the supervision of institutions and improve work efficiency across the organisation, the MAS said in a statement this week.

The financial watchdog's move comes as numerous regulators, and financial institutions, worldwide increasingly use technology in order to better manage regulatory procedures and ease the burden of compliance. This burgeoning trend is being referred to as “regtech”. 

The MAS's Data Analytics Group will comprise three units: data governance and architecture office (DGA); specialist analytics and visualisation office (SAV); and supervisory technology office (suptech). 

DGA will create data management policies, manage data collection, maintain the MAS's data catalogue, and publish the MAS's official statistics.

SAV will carry out data analysis in partnership with other departments within the MAS. It will help other departments improve their data capabilities through tools and code libraries, and will collaborate with the MAS academy to deliver data analytics training programmes. Additionally, SAV will work with the MAS's IT department to design and implement the technical infrastructure needed to support data analytics work.

Suptech, in partnership with other MAS departments, will conduct data analysis on supervisory and financial sector data. The unit will also work with the MAS's Fintech and Innovation Group to promote data analytics capabilities within the financial industry and foster innovation to make regulatory compliance more efficient and effective, the MAS said in a statement. 

The MAS has appointed David Hardoon as chief data officer and head of DAG. 

Hardoon joins the MAS from Azendian Solutions, where he was co-founder and executive director, and chief of analytics. 

In his new role, he will report to Ong Chong Tee, deputy managing director of financial supervision at the MAS.

“The digitisation of information and the harnessing of data from multiple platforms have created the opportunity to use data analytics to understand the economy and the financial system with a depth that was not possible before,” said Ravi Menon, managing director of the MAS.

He added: “MAS is committed to building strong capabilities in data analytics to seize this opportunity. Our new Data Analytics Group will work with the financial industry to sharpen the surveillance of risks, and with the various departments within MAS to transform the way we do our work.”

Earlier this month, five Singapore-based polytechnics joined forces with a business association in a bid to drive the progression of financial technology within the wealth management industry.