Singapore’s Central Bank appoints first Chief Sustainability Officer

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has announced that Abigail Ng will assume the role of Chief Sustainability Officer (CSO) from October 6, 2025. 

Ng will take over from Gillian Tan, who has concurrently held the roles of Assistant Managing Director (Development & International) and CSO since October 2022 – but will be the first person entirely dedicated to sustainability leadership. Tan will continue to lead the Development & International Group at MAS as Group Head.

Ng is currently Department Head of the Markets Policy & Consumer Department and brings strong experience in sustainability issues, including collaborating with international organisations and diverse stakeholders, to formulate sustainability disclosure policies and requirements, MAS said. She has a law degree from the National University of Singapore.

Monetary Authority of Singapore entering a more mature sustainability phase

Singapore's central bank said in a statement that with its sustainability agenda entering a more developed and mature phase, this was an opportune time to transition this work to leadership under a dedicated CSO. 

Over the last three years, under Gillian’s leadership, MAS’ Sustainability Group launched the Finance for Net Zero Action Plan to mobilise financing to catalyse Asia’s transition to a low carbon economy. 

The Group also advanced key initiatives, including the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy to promote consistency and clarity in sustainable financing standards, the Transition Credits Coalition (TRACTION) and the Financing Asia’s Transition Partnership (FAST-P) to accelerate energy transition and blended finance in Asia, as well as the Sustainable Finance Jobs Transformation Map to enhance skills and competencies in sustainable finance.

Significant opportunities from Asia's low-carbon transition

In July, current CSO Gillian Tan said in a foreword of the company’s most recent sustainability report that the region’s low-carbon transition continues to present significant economic opportunities. “Despite global headwinds affecting climate action, Southeast Asia’s sustainable finance market has demonstrated resilience, with sustainable finance proceeds raised from bonds and loans in Southeast Asia increasing to record highs and growth outpacing that of other regions in 2024."