East Asia & Pacific · GDP rank #26
Singapore
SG · SGD @ 0.7815/USD
Tab 03
Rails & infrastructure
The instant rail, the RTGS spine, the card switch, the direct-debit scheme, and the country's CBDC stance. Each rail is reported with operator, launch year, and 2024 flow so the relative scale across rails is readable at a glance.
CBDC status is deliberately granular: live, pilot, preparation, live stalled, and sceptical, no pilot are different things.
Digital SGD (Project Orchid + Project Guardian)
Target · no committed retail launch; tokenised-deposit and wholesale CBDC live work
MAS published the CBDC framework in 2023; preference is for tokenised deposits + wholesale CBDC. MAS confirmed in April 2026 that tokenised bills settled in CBDC will be issued in 2026.
Instant payments
PayNow (over FAST)
The instant leg typically carries the vast majority of retail consumer flow in modern payment systems — and sits in direct tension with card networks and wallets for the same transactions.
Built atop FAST (2014 launch). PayNow adds alias-based routing (NRIC, mobile, UEN). PayNow Corporate is live for businesses; PayNow-PromptPay corridor volume quadrupled vs launch quarter by Q1 2026.
- Operator
- Banking Computer Services (BCS / NETS) under ABS / MAS oversight
- Live since
- 2.0k
- Per-txn limit
- 200,000 SGD
- Fee per txn
- S$0 for consumers
Transactions · 2024
Cleared value · 2024
Participating institutions
RTGS
MEPS+ (MAS Electronic Payment System Plus)
The RTGS spine clears high-value interbank flow — including the settlement of the instant-rail cycles and card-network net positions. Transaction count is modest; cleared value is enormous.
- Operator
- Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)
Transactions · 2024
Cleared value · 2024
Card switch
NETS (Network for Electronic Transfers)
Bank-consortium-owned; processes NETS-branded debit and NETS QR volumes.
Source · NETS
Direct debit
eGIRO
Direct debit is the boring rail that carries recurring subscriptions, utilities, and payroll pull-payments. It is routinely the largest single channel by count after cards.
Transactions · 2024