Singapore demonstrates the importance of public and private sectors working together to effectively support a population.
Singapore has maintained its position at the top of the Global Financial Inclusion Index for the third consecutive year, as the government, financial system, and employer pillars continue to function effectively in tandem.
“The government and private sector work alongside the financial system to support a good quality of life for Singapore’s population,” says Howe Chung Wan, managing director and head of Asian Fixed Income for Principal Asset Management.
Singapore has held the top ranking in the government support pillar for the past two years, and now ranks in the top 10 for nine out of 13 indicators within this pillar.
“Government subsidies, across home ownership, schooling, and health care for example, are widely available for residents,” Chung Wan says. “Thanks to Singapore’s ‘whole-of-government coordination,’ these are highly targeted to ensure that support is directed to those who need it the most.”
The city-state also exhibited a strong performance in the employer support pillar to now rank first overall and showed advancements in its scores across all four indicators.1 Though its performance in the financial system support pillar improved by 5.1 points, it dropped one place in ranking, from third to fourth.
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While Singapore has seen some stagnation in the access to credit indicator (where its score is flat) and a decline in its score for access to capital, it has moved up one place in the ranking for the former and maintains its first-place position for the latter. Singapore’s financial system has also now achieved first place in the enabler of general business confidence indicator, and risen three places to fifth as an enabler of small and medium enterprise (SME) growth and success.
| Overall | 2024 | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 78.8 | +4.9 |
| Rank | 1 | = |
| Financial system | 2024 | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 75.7 | +5.1 |
| Rank | 4 | -1 |
| Government | 2024 | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 80.4 | +4.9 |
| Rank | 1 | = |
| Employer | 2024 | YoY change |
|---|---|---|
| Score | 85.7 | +4.0 |
| Rank | 4 | +1 |
Singapore is a strong example of a market that has invested over the long-term in digitizing its financial system and improving financial literacy. In 2022, it ranked 10th for online connectivity and has since risen to seventh in 2023 and fifth in 2024. It has also been consistently in the top five for its presence and quality of fintechs.
Alongside a highly educated population (where it ranks number one), Singapore has risen from 12th in 2022 for financial literacy, to ninth in 2024. It’s risen from 24th in 2022 for the availability of government provided financial education, to 11th today.
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