Tacit agreement that SGX's dual role is untenable

SINGAPORE'S market regulators seem to finally be in agreement with a position that The Business Times has taken for years - that having a profit-driven market regulator, one with dual roles of revenue generation and market oversight, is simply not tenable.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Singapore Exchange (SGX) issued a joint consultation paper last week, proposing some of the most extensive changes to market function and regulation to date. Not surprisingly, it caused quite a stir among market participants.

There have been murmurs of approval on how the proposals are a much-needed step in the right direction, whispers of concern from brokerages who worry about their impact on liquidity, and grumbles from those who feel these measures are long overdue.