SINGAPORE: The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said Monday (May 4) it is working with the banking industry, the Government Technology Agency of Singapore and the Singapore Police Force to strengthen the detection of financial crime using artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) tools.
MAS said in a statement that as part of broader efforts to explore industry-wide use cases, it has launched a Proof-of-Value (POV) initiative to test AI/ML techniques for early detection of scams.
The initiative brings together data from five banks to develop models aimed at identifying higher-risk transactions and accounts.
MAS said earlier identification of suspicious activity could support faster assessment and intervention, potentially reducing customer losses to scams.
To support the initiative, MAS has established a secure data-sharing environment governed by industry protocols to safeguard customer information.
Data used in the exercise will remain confidential and protected using cryptographic techniques.
Meanwhile, bank account numbers are being hashed, ensuring that only the contributing bank can identify actual account details.
Access to data is restricted to authorised personnel within a controlled environment that is continuously monitored. All data will be deleted at the end of the initiative.
MAS said the initiative could lay the groundwork for deeper collaboration across the industry in using AI/ML to enhance existing financial crime prevention efforts.
"After assessing the effectiveness of the POV and learning from it, MAS may expand the scope and sophistication of AI/ML models used - incorporating broader datasets, and a wider set of use cases to further fortify our financial system's defences against criminal activity," it said. - Xinhua
