MAS and ESMA sign MOU on Singapore’s financial benchmarks
29 April 2020
On 17 April 2020, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (“MAS”) and the European Securities and Markets Authority (“ESMA”), the EU’s securities markets regulator, announced in a joint release that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”), completing the process to allow the use of Singapore’s financial benchmarks in the EU. Under the MOU, MAS and ESMA will share information and supervisory activities on Singapore-regulated financial benchmarks.
The signing of the MOU follows the European Commission’s equivalence decision recognising Singapore’s regulatory framework on financial benchmarks as equivalent to the requirements under the EU’s Benchmarks Regulation. The MOU and the equivalence decision will allow financial institutions in the EU to continue using, as reference rates in their contracts, both SIBOR and the Singapore Dollar Swap Offer Rate (SOR), which are financial benchmarks regulated in Singapore.
Reference materials
The media release is available from the MAS website www.mas.gov.sg or by clicking here.