Main article:
List of banks in Singapore
This is a list of
banks with operations in Singapore. Location of
incorporation is provided in brackets for foreign
banks. There are, at present, 111 commercial banks,
49 merchant banks, and 45 banks with representative
offices in Singapore. (EFA=Exempt Financial Adviser;
ACU=Asian Currency Unit; SGS=Singapore Government
Securities Market)
Commercial banks
Commercial banks in Singapore may undertake
universal banking, such as the taking of deposits
and the provision of cheque services and lending, as
well any other business authorised by the Monetary
Authority of Singapore, including financial advisory
services, insurance brokering and capital market
services, as long as they are permitted under
section 30 of the Banking Act. Since July 2001,
banks were no longer permitted to engage in non-financial
activities.
Local banks
In a bid to encourage consolidation of the local
banking industry to form larger banking
congolmerates better able to regionalise and compete
with foreign banks, the government liberalised the
banking sector by awarding greater liberty for
foreign banks to operate in Singapore in 2001. Since
then, the number of local full banks has shrunk by
more than half to 6 today.
Full banks
There are presently 6 locally-incorporated full
banks in Singapore, owned by three banking groups.
These full banks have the liberty to provide any
financial service as permitted by the Banking Act.
Merchant banks
The
typical activities of merchant banks
include corporate finance,
underwriting of share and bond
issues, mergers and acquisitions,
portfolio investment management,
management consultancy, personal
banking and other fee-based
activities. merchant banks may not
accept sight or savings deposits or
borrow from the public. However they
may accept deposits or borrow from
banks, finance companies,
shareholders and companies
controlled by their shareholders.