MAS Partners Financial Industry to Create Framework for Responsible Use of AI

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced that it is working with financial industry partners to create a framework for financial institutions to promote the responsible adoption of Artificial Intelligence and Data Analytics (AIDA).

This framework, known as Veritas, will enable financial institutions to evaluate their AIDA-driven solutions against the principles of fairness, ethics, accountability and transparency (FEAT) that MAS co-created with the financial industry last year to strengthen internal governance around the application of AI and the management and use of data. Proper governance around the use of AIDA is critical to fostering trust and confidence in AIDAdriven decisions and financial services.

The Veritas framework was highlighted by Mr Heng Swee Keat, Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, in his speech laying out Singapore’s National AI Strategy at the Singapore FinTech Festival and Singapore Week of Innovation and TeCHnology (SFF x SWITCH) 2019.

Veritas aims to provide financial institutions with a verifiable way to incorporate the FEAT principles into their AIDA solutions. It will comprise open source tools that can be applied to different business lines, such as retail banking and corporate finance, and in different markets. For a start, Veritas will focus on use cases in three areas: customer marketing, risk scoring, and fraud detection. The FEAT principles and Veritas are part of Singapore’s National AI Strategy, and help to build a progressive and trusted environment for AI adoption within the financial sector.

The Veritas consortium is currently made up of 17 members, comprising MAS, SGInnovate, EY and 14 financial institutions. The consortium will produce a report on its findings and conclusions in the second half of 2020. MAS welcomes other interested organisations to participate in the consortium.

Dr David Hardoon, Special Advisor (Artificial Intelligence), MAS, said, “AI has the potential to transform financial services, but it must be used in a safe and responsible manner. Good governance is essential to AI adoption in the financial industry. With FEAT and Veritas, financial instituitons will have the guideposts and toolkit to institute sound AI governance practices. This will pave the way for a vibrant and responsible AI-driven financial centre in Singapore.”