Goh Chok Tong’s longtime role with MAS comes to an end

SINGAPORE: Emeritus Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong’s longtime role as Senior Advisor to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is set to end, as the retired politician prepares to step down from the position next week.

Mr Goh has played a role at MAS since he was appointed as Minister for Trade and Industry in 1985. At the time, MAS was a relatively new institution, having been established just nine years earlier in 1976.

During his tenure as Minister for Trade and Industry, Mr Goh played an instrumental role in strengthening MAS and enhancing its capabilities. His close involvement with the central bank continued when he was appointed as Deputy Prime Minister in 1988.

In 1990, Mr Goh oversaw the merger of MAS with the Singapore government’s regulatory body for securities and futures trading, which created a unified regulatory body with broad powers over the financial sector.

He continued to focus on strengthening MAS when he became Prime Minister in 1990. The reforms he led are said to have helped establish Singapore as a central financial hub in Asia and contributed to the country’s economic growth.

Mr Goh was appointed as the Chairman of the MAS Board in 2004, succeeding the former chairman, Lee Hsien Loong, who had become the Prime Minister of Singapore.

He served in this position for six years until 2010 when he stepped down and was succeeded by Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who is currently the Senior Minister and Coordinating Minister for Social Policies in the Singapore government. He was given the Senior Advisor role in 2011.

MAS’ statement announcing that Mr Goh is stepping down from the Senior Advisor role comes close to three years after he announced his political retirement on 25 June 2020, marking the end of 44 years of service. /TISG