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Banking Act

(CHAPTER 19)

(Original Enactment: Act 41 of 1970)

REVISED EDITION 2003

(31st July 2003)

An Act to provide for the licensing and regulation of the business of banks and related financial institutions, and matters related thereto.

[23/2001]

[1st January 1971]

PART I

PRELIMINARY

Short title

1. This Act may be cited as the Banking Act.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“agreement” means an agreement whether formal or informal and whether express or implied;

“Authority” means the Monetary Authority of Singapore established under the Monetary Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 186);

“bank” means any company which holds a valid licence under section 7, 11 or 79;

“bank in Singapore” means —

(a)	a bank incorporated in Singapore; or
(b)	in the case of a bank incorporated outside Singapore, the branches and offices of the bank located within Singapore;

“bank incorporated outside Singapore” means a bank incorporated, formed or established outside Singapore;

“banking business” means the business of receiving money on current or deposit account, paying and collecting cheques drawn by or paid in by customers, the making of advances to customers, and includes such other business as the Authority may prescribe for the purposes of this Act;

“capital funds” means —

(a)	in the case of a bank incorporated in Singapore, the aggregate of its issued and paid-up capital and its published reserves (excluding such reserves as the Authority may specify by notice in writing), deduction having been made for any loss appearing in the accounts of the bank; or
(b)	in the case of a bank incorporated outside Singapore, such net head office funds and such other liabilities as the Authority may, by notice in writing, specify;

“company” means any company defined in any written law for the time being in force relating to companies, any company formed in pursuance of any Royal Charter or Letters Patent, and any company incorporated or registered under any written law in force in Singapore and includes any body corporate or unincorporate, whether incorporated, formed or established outside Singapore;

“corporation” has the same meaning as in section 4(1) of the Companies Act (Cap. 50);

“credit facilities” means —

(a)	the granting by a bank of advances, loans and other facilities whereby a customer of the bank has access to funds or financial guarantees; or
(b)	the incurring by a bank of other liabilities on behalf of a customer;

“director” includes any person occupying the position of director of a corporation by whatever name called and includes a person in accordance with whose directions or instructions the directors of a corporation are accustomed to act and an alternate or substitute director;

“employee” includes an individual seconded or temporarily transferred from another employer;

“financial holding company” means a company belonging to a class of financial institutions approved as financial holding companies under section 28 of the Monetary Authority of Singapore Act (Cap. 186);

“licence” means a licence granted or held under section 7, 11 or 79;

“officer”, in relation to a corporation, includes —

(a)	a director, secretary or an employee of the corporation;
(b)	a receiver or manager of any part of the undertaking of the corporation appointed under a power contained in any instrument; and
(c)	the liquidator of the corporation appointed in a voluntary winding up;

“person” includes a corporation;

“place of business”, in relation to a bank, includes a head or main office, a branch, an agency, a representative office, a mobile branch of the bank, any office established and maintained for a limited period only and any other place used by the bank for the dispensing or acceptance of money on account or for the conduct of other banking business;

“published reserves”, in relation to a bank, means reserves which appear in the accounts of the bank which are duly audited or certified as correct by the auditor of the bank;

“qualifying subsidiary” means a company in relation to which more than 50% of its issued and paid-up capital is owned by a bank incorporated in Singapore and such bank meets the requirements under section 9(1) and (2);

“related corporation”, in relation to a corporation, means a corporation that is deemed to be related to the first-mentioned corporation under section 6 of the Companies Act (Cap. 50);

“savings account liabilities”, in relation to a bank, means the total deposits at that bank which normally require the presentation of passbooks for the deposit or withdrawal of moneys;

“share”, in relation to a bank, means a share in the share capital of the bank and includes an interest in such a share;

“sight liabilities”, in relation to a bank, means the total deposits at the bank which are repayable on demand, but does not include savings account liabilities or the deposits of any other bank at the bank;

“time liabilities”, in relation to a bank, means the total deposits at the bank which are repayable otherwise than on demand, but does not include savings account liabilities or the deposits of any other bank at the bank.

[2/84; 21/96; 23/2001]

(2) Without prejudice to any other meaning which the word “insolvent” may have, a bank shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be insolvent if either it has ceased to pay its debts in the ordinary course of business or is unable to pay its debts as they become due.