The Regulatory Architecture: MAS, the Banking Act, the SFA, the FAA and the FSMA: practical consequences

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For a foreign group that wants to serve wealthy clients from Singapore, the architecture described in this chapter translates into a series of concrete decisions. The first concerns the vehicle. A bank or merchant bank licence under the Banking Act carries the broadest permissions and the heaviest prudential requirements. A capital markets services licence for fund management or dealing suits an asset manager without deposit-taking. A financial adviser’s licence suits an advisory firm that neither manages assets nor holds client money. External asset managers, discussed in Chapter E.V, usually hold a capital markets services licence and work with custodian banks.

The second decision concerns the client base. A firm that serves only accredited and institutional investors benefits from substantial exemptions, but it must document each client’s status, obtain the opt-in and review the status when circumstances change. A firm with retail clients must apply the full set of conduct rules on product recommendations, disclosure and fair dealing. The third concerns people. Every individual who advises, deals or manages must be appointed as a representative and meet competency requirements. Every senior manager should have a documented scope of responsibility that MAS can examine.

• Identify each regulated activity the business will carry on and match it to the Banking Act, the SFA, the FAA or the FSMA.
• Check whether an exemption applies, and remember that an exemption from licensing leaves conduct duties untouched.
• Classify every client as retail, accredited or institutional, record the opt-in of accredited investors and review the classification periodically.
• Appoint all representatives through the public register and verify their examination status before they give advice.
• Map the responsibilities of senior managers and material risk personnel and align remuneration with conduct.
• Apply the MAS anti-money laundering notices with particular attention to source of wealth, following the guidance of May 2026 for private banking clients.
• Review outsourcing and technology arrangements against section 47A of the Banking Act and the technology risk requirements of the FSMA.
• Treat customer information as protected under section 47 of the Banking Act and disclose it only through a statutory gateway.
• Track the consultations, notices and guidelines that MAS publishes, because much of the operative detail lies there.

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of October 2026.