Security

US, MAS Announce Cybersecurity Cooperation During Kamala Harris’ Visit

The United States Department of the Treasury and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has finalised a bilateral Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cybersecurity cooperation during US Vice President Kamala Harris’ visit to Singapore.

MAS said in a statement that “both the US and Singapore recognised the importance of deepening cooperation in new domains to deal with the challenges of the 21st century”.

The Treasury and MAS have had ongoing exchange of cyber threat information since 2018. The MoU formalises and strengthens the cybersecurity partnership between both agencies.

Specifically, the MoU enhances cooperation between Treasury and MAS in information sharing relating to the financial sector including cybersecurity regulations and guidance, cybersecurity incidents, and cybersecurity threat intelligence.

Both agencies will also be involved in staff training and study visits to promote cooperation in the area of cybersecurity as well as competency-building activities such as the conduct of cross-border cybersecurity exercises.

Janet L. Yellen

Janet L. Yellen, United States Secretary of the Treasury said,

“In our interconnected world, Treasury and MAS share common goals of maintaining strength and stability, as well as operational and cyber resilience in each country’s economy and financial system.

The cybersecurity cooperation agreement will serve to improve the cyber resilience of both countries’ financial systems.”

Ravi Menon

Ravi Menon, Managing Director of MAS said,

“Given the growing complexity of cyber attacks and how interconnected the global financial system is, close cooperation is essential to ensure the cyber resilience of our financial systems.

This MoU between the US Treasury and MAS will be particularly useful in the areas of cyber threat information sharing and cross-border cybersecurity exercises. It will also help cement what is already a strong and fruitful partnership between our two institutions.”