The Monetary Authority of Singapore estimates the city-state’s finance sector will create more than 3000 new technology roles in 2022 alone.
Managing director Ravi Menon told the Singapore Financial Forum 2022 that financial institutions in Singapore “are making significant investments in technology.”
“Major banks and insurers are accelerating their digital transformation and ramping up hiring in application development, data science, and artificial intelligence,” Menon said.
Menon said that the MAS estimates Singapore’s finance sector will create over 9,400 permanent roles this year, about one-third of them in tech.
“Software developers and engineers continue to have the highest demand, with more than 700 opportunities,” he said.
“They support a wide range of exciting activities, such as designing and developing digital finance services; applying blockchain technology in trade finance; and using artificial intelligence to detect fraud and money laundering.”
Menon also called attention to the number of technology roles that companies have committed to bringing on, both this year and beyond.
This included the three-year, 1500 technology staff recruitment plans of OCBC Bank; as well as investments by Bank of America, Shanghai Pudong Development Bank and insurer SCOR.
“Singapore has made a name for itself as providing one of the world’s most conducive environments for financial innovation,” he said.
The MAS is also playing its part, collaborating with Workforce Singapore (WSG) and the Institute of Banking & Finance (IBF) “to support more systematically … mid-career transitions to the financial sector.”
“One key initiative is the technology in finance immersion program (TFIP), which has seen promising results,” Menon said.
“Ninety [90] percent of the 2019 cohort who were from non-tech jobs completed the program and have taken on good tech jobs in financial institutions.
“Another 530 are going through the program from the 2020 and 2021 runs.
“I am pleased to say that IBF is launching the fourth run of this program this year, with close to 700 training places – which is double the number offered last year.”
