Singapore morning news for October 16

Why Singapore’s defence tech agency asked 300 hackers to test its systems
In the Singapore Government’s first-ever bug bounty programme, the Defence Science and Technology Agency of Singapore (DSTA) invited 300 ethical hackers from around the world to test the Ministry of Defence’s (MINDEF) internet-facing systems for vulnerabilities, or bugs.
— GovInsider

Singapore Sept private home sales rise 42 pct from year earlier
Sales of private homes by developers in Singapore rose about 42 percent in September from a year earlier, government data showed on Monday.
— Reuters

StarHub CEO, who stormed in with job cuts, wants cheaper network
SINGAPORE — StarHub Ltd chief executive officer Peter Kaliaropoulos said the company is looking to pare costs even further by sharing infrastructure after announcing he would trim the company’s workforce by about 12 per cent.
— Today Singapore

Ban on lending by e-wallet firms will benefit local banks: Moody’s
Local banks will benefit from the impending move by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to bar larger electronic wallet operators from lending their wallet funds, according to Moody’s, a credit ratings agency.
— Straits Times

United Nations chooses leading marketplace builder Arcadier to defeat non-communicable diseases around the world
Arcadier, a Singapore-headquartered online marketplace builder, has been chosen by the United Nations Office for Project Services’ (UNOPS) Defeat-NCD (Non-Communicable Disease) Partnership as the partner for their Defeat-NCD Marketplace.
— AEC News Today/PR Newswire (media release)

Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat says Oxfam analysis is ‘completely wrong’
The Oxfam debate continues, now with Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat chiming in that the Oxfam index on commitment to reduce inequality which ranked Singapore as among the worst 10 countries in the efforts against poverty was based on a ‘completely wrong analysis’.
— TOC

RCEP inter-sessional ministerial meeting held in Singapore
The 6th RCEP Inter-sessional Ministerial Meeting (IMM) was held in Singapore on 12-13 October, with Minister of State for Commerce & Industry representing India at the event.
— SME Times

Earn Extra Miles and a Pair of Round-the-world Tickets in Business Class with Mileslife’s New Retail Partners
Going beyond daily lifestyle and travel spending, Mileslife, the region’s leading airline loyalty innovation company has partnered with more than 20 luxury retail brands to help its users earn airline miles while engaging in their favourite national pastime — shopping.
— AEC News Today/PR Newswire (media release)

Singapore private home sales rebound as buyers move past latest curbs
SINGAPORE — Private home sales in Singapore jumped 51 per cent in September, as developers marketed more projects post the Hungry Ghost Festival month, a period Chinese buyers consider inauspicious, and as buyers moved past the additional cooling measures imposed in July.
— Today Singapore

Niacet Opens Office in Singapore
Niacet Corporation, the global leader in salts of acetic and propionic acid, serving the food, pharmaceutical, animal nutrition and technical market sectors, today announced the opening of an office in Singapore.
— AEC News Today/PR Newswire (media release)

Nets starts service for online business billing and collections
PAYMENT-service provider Nets on Monday launched PayCollect, an online billing and collections service for businesses to issue invoices and collect payments electronically.
— Business Times

SGX plans to hard-code due diligence banking guidelines into listing rules
SINGAPORE Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo) plans to incorporate the due diligence guidelines issued by the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) under its Listing Rules, following a public consultation that will take place by the year end.
— Business Times

How can Singapore be the enabler of smart cities?
The Ubers, Airbnbs, Facebooks, and Amazons of the world have come to typify disruption. What they all have in common is that they function as platforms – providing the backbone that allows users to easily transact, trade, and communicate with each o
— Gov Insider

The Beast is coming to Singapore
The world’s largest inflatable obstacle course, known as The Beast, will be featured for the first time in Asia at the GTFO! Launch Festival, organised by Get Out! Events.
— AEC News Today/PN Newswire (media release)

Driver arrested for attempting to smuggle man out of Singapore in luggage compartment of bus
SINGAPORE – A 37-year-old Malaysian driver was arrested after attempting to smuggle a man out of Singapore on Sunday (Oct 14).
The Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) said on Monday that the driver, who was driving a Malaysia-registered bus, had looked visibly nervous when he was stopped for checks at the Tuas Checkpoint at about 9.20pm.
— Straits Times

Ex-parking warden jailed for falsely issuing summonses
A parking warden skipped her patrols, claiming that she had to take care of her ailing grandmother – and tried to hoodwink her bosses by issuing summonses to motorists who had not broken any rules.
— Straits Times

Make rice production more resilient to climate change: Lawrence Wong
The production of rice, one of the world’s most important crops, is facing major problems such as slow growth and climate change, which could increase its price by more than 30 per cent by 2050.
— Straits Times

Palm readers, robot assistants at vending machine trade show
A vending machine that can “read” your palm for cashless payments is among the highlights at a trade show for vending machines.
— Straits Times

Money mule guilty in scams totalling $760k
A money mule for an international syndicate, which is behind scams involving impersonating the police, travelled to Singapore 14 times last year to collect and transfer criminal proceeds totalling almost $760,000.
— Straits Times

Growing problem of kids with high blood pressure
One of Dr Andrew Sng’s patients weighed 80kg and was diagnosed with high blood pressure – and he was just eight years old.
— Straits Times

Pictures worth a million words
For the fourth year running, the World Press Photo (WPP) Exhibition is being held in Singapore with its collection of award-winning pictures from around the world.
— Straits Times

Two MOUs inked in China to boost S’pore arbitration profile
Singapore’s reputation as a global arbitration hub has received a further boost, with the signing of two memoranda of underststanding (MOU) in Beijing by the Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC).
— Straits Times

How Cheap Is the Singapore Stock Market After the Market Sell-Off Last Week?
The Straits Times Index (SGX: ^STI) shed 141 points, or 4.4%, to 3,069.2 last week. On Thursday (11 October) alone, the index tumbled 2.7%.
— Motley Fool.sg

‘Talent gap’ is no excuse for lax cybersecurity
SINGAPORE (Oct 15): Cyberattacks could very well “blow us up”, says Ian Bremmer, president of political risk consultancy Eurasia Group. Bremmer, who was speaking at the ANZ Finance & Treasury Forum in Singapore on Oct 10, warned that cyberattacks pose major near-term risks to organisations and society across the globe.
— The Edge

Vending machine market set to grow in Singapore | Video
With the vending machine market set to grow in Singapore, organisers of a trade show said this represents a key opportunity for food & beverage and retail businesses in the country. Lee Li Ying reports.
— ChannelNewsAsia

Feature photo Toluna/ quik_silvez

This week’s Singapore morning news feature photo acknowledges International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, October 17.

Find our previous morning news feature photos in the AEC News Today Morning News Feature Photos gallery where you will find a pictorial display of daily life throughout the Asean Economic Community (AEC).

Singapore morning news by AEC News Today is your one stop source for Singapore news on matters of governance and policies affecting Asean business communities. It is published M-F by AEC News Today: Governance, not government; policies not politics.

Singapore morning news for October 16 added by Maria Mirasol Rasonable on October 16, 2018
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Maria Mirasol Rasonable

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Maria Mirasol Rasonable graduated with a Bachelors Degree in journalism from Polytechnic University of the Philippines, Santa Mesa, Manila, Philippines.

She previously covered police rounds for Philippine Daily Inquirer as a trainee before becoming editorial staff at Gospel Komiks under the Communication Foundation for Asia (CFA-MG), Santa Mesa, Manila where she wrote lifestyle and trending fashion and styles articles.