Singapore’s central bank constitutes expert panel on cybersecurity and technology resilience

With Singapore’s financial sector becoming increasingly reliant on technology, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has established a new panel of experts to advise on measures to improve the operational resilience of the financial sector. 

With the rapidly evolving threats and technology being used in the financial sector, the new Cyber and Technology Resilience Experts (CTREZ) panel has an expanded mandate to cover technology resilience which, together with cybersecurity, significantly underpins the operational resilience of the financial sector, MAS said in a statement.  

The panel will comprise 13 global industry experts and practitioners in both cybersecurity and technology resilience and will replace MAS’ Cyber Security Advisory Panel (CSAP). 

The CSAP panel was formed in 2017 and comprised leading cyber security experts and thought leaders. 

Its mandate was to advise on strategies for MAS and financial institutions in Singapore to sustain cyber resilience and trust in Singapore’s financial system. 

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With a rise in phishing attacks and attempts at fraudulent transactions, the Singapore central bank has been taking several steps to improve security in the country’s financial sector.  

Face verification 

Earlier this month, MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) announced that major retail banks in Singapore would progressively implement Singpass Face Verification (SFV) over the next three months to strengthen the digital token (DT) setup process for retail banking customers. 

The CTREZ panel will advise MAS on key emerging technology risks and threats facing the financial sector and recommend strategies and measures to enhance the technology and cyber resilience of Singapore’s financial sector. 

From the banking sector, the panel includes global leaders such as Citigroup's Managing Director, Global Head of Cybersecurity Operations, Ann Barron-DiCamillo, HSBC’s group Chief Data and Analytics Officer, Monique Shivanandan, and UBS Group Chief Information Security Officer, Robert Wainwright. 

Also included in the panel is Nasdaq’s, Executive Vice President, Chief Technology Officer and Chief Information Officer, Bradley Peterson. 

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From the technology side, there is Amazon Web Services’ Chief Information Security Officer, Chris Betz, and Microsoft's Corporate Vice President and Deputy Chief Information Security, Ann Johnson. 

Singapore's Commissioner of Cybersecurity and CEO of Cyber Security Agency (CSA), David Koh, is also part of the panel. 

MAS’ Managing Director, Chia Der Jiun, noted that as financial institutions become increasingly reliant on technology to deliver services, they must be able to maintain technology resilience and manage cyber risks well.  

“We look forward to tapping on the CTREX panel to provide global perspectives to MAS and the industry on building these important capabilities, as we continue to forge ahead on our digitalisation journey,” Chia said.