Singapore and the UK have basically concluded negotiations on the UK-Singapore Digital Economy Agreement (UKSDEA), which began in June this year, according to the Singaporean Ministry of Trade and Industry.

Illustrative image (Photo: UK Investor)

Singaporean Minister-in-charge of Trade Relations S Iswaran and UK Secretary of State for International Trade Anne-Marie Trevelyan jointly announced the conclusion on December 9 following their in-person meeting in London, during Iswaran’s visit to the UK.

Iswaran was quoted by the Singaporean Ministry of Trade and Industry as saying that the UKSDEA builds upon and, in some areas, goes further than the two countries' existing agreements. "It will set a global benchmark for high-standard digital trade rules, and benefit people and businesses in our two countries,” he said.

The UKSDEA is Singapore’s third of its kind, following the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement with Chile and New Zealand, and the Singapore-Australia DEA. The deal includes binding disciplines on cornerstones of the digital economy, such as data, as well as cooperative elements in a wide range of emerging and innovative areas such as Artificial Intelligence, fintech and regtech, digital identities and legal technology.

To date, the two countries have signed three MOUs in Digital Trade Facilitation, Digital Identities, and Cyber Security.

Source: VNA