Tracking of Singaporean Banks' Revenue from Payment Networks and Evaluation of Contractual Risks in Past Four Years

Mr Victor Lye asked the Prime Minister and Minister for Finance (a) whether MAS tracks the size and proportion of Singapore banks' total revenue from Visa and Mastercard interchange fees, network incentives and co-branding arrangements in each of the last four years; (b) if not, whether such data should be tracked given systemic risks from payment network fragmentation; and (c) whether MAS has assessed risks faced by banks from contractual obligations with such networks.

My response will also cover the question for written answer raised by Mr Victor Lye for the Sitting on or after 4 March1.

The card revenue earned by Singapore banks is disclosed in their annual financial statements. Over the past four years, card revenue, of which a portion comprises interchange, network and co-branding fees, has averaged around 3% of total revenue, reflecting banks' diversified revenue streams.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore's (MAS') approach is to encourage competition in our payment services industry to foster innovation. Merchants are able to choose from a good range of digital payment solutions with different costs. International card schemes are generally higher cost, which can vary from merchant to merchant, while domestic payment schemes, like NETS Electronic Funds Transfer at Point of Sale (EFTPOS), PayNow and the Singapore Quick Response Code, are significantly lower in costs.