How to check someone on the MAS Register of Representatives
A short check to make before you share your money or your personal details with anyone: where the register is, how to search it, how to read the result, and what it leaves out.
Before you hand anyone your money, your policy documents or your NRIC number, it is worth a few minutes to confirm that they are who they say they are, and that they act for the firm they say they act for. In Singapore there is a public place to do that, kept by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
This is not about suspicion. Trust in any working relationship is built over time, as I wrote in the emotional bank account. But trust is easier to build on facts you have checked yourself. Trust, but verify.
What is the Register of Representatives?
The Register of Representatives is the public record MAS keeps of individuals whom financial institutions have appointed to act on their behalf, under the Securities and Futures Act and the FAA, the Act that covers financial advisory work. When a financial institution appoints a representative for this work, it must notify MAS, and the register gives the public a way to search every appointed representative notified to MAS.
This arrangement is known as the Representative Notification Framework, and MAS introduced it in 2010. When it did, MAS described the purpose plainly: to let members of the public verify whether a person is an authorised representative, what they are allowed to do, which firms they act for, and whether MAS has taken certain actions against them.
Two points on the register's own page are worth keeping in mind. The people listed are not MAS employees, and they do not speak for MAS. And the register is a record of appointments, nothing more.
How to search it, step by step
- Go to the register at eservices.mas.gov.sg/rr. Check the address bar: it should end in .gov.sg. Do not follow a link someone sends you; type the address yourself.
- In the "Representative Number / Name" box, enter either the full representative number or part of the person's name. The number has to be exact; a name can be partial.
- Wait a moment for the page's automatic security check to finish, then select Search.
- Two notices appear before the results. The first reminds you that the people listed are not MAS employees. The second says that if you are on a call, you should verify that the caller is the person on the register before making any transaction, for example by meeting at the financial institution's premises and checking their identity document against the name shown. Read them; they are good sense.
- The results list the representative number, the name and the current principal company, meaning the firm the person represents today.
- Select a row to open the full details.
A name search can bring up several people with similar names. The representative number removes that doubt, which is why it is worth asking for. Every page of this site shows my representative number, FCN200135730; you can search it the same way.
What to check in the result
The details page is short. Here is what each part tells you.
| What you see | What to check |
|---|---|
| Name as reflected in NRIC or passport | Does it match the person in front of you, and the name on their name card and emails? |
| Principal company | Is it the firm they told you they represent? Is it the firm named on the documents you are signing? |
| Activities, with the types of products | Does the list include what they are doing for you? For example, the types of investment products or life policies being discussed. |
| Status | "Appointed" is the usual entry. The register's legend also defines Temporary, Provisional, Suspended and Deemed Suspended. |
| From and To dates | When each appointment started, and whether it is still current ("Present"). |
| Past activities | Earlier appointments, covering the past three years. |
| MAS enforcement actions | Actions MAS has published against the person, if any. MAS notes it may not make all such actions public. |
The most useful check is the one MAS itself suggests on the details page: make sure the activities shown include the service the person is providing to you. Someone may appear on the register for one type of product and not another.
What the register does not tell you
The register answers "who is this, and who do they act for?" It does not answer most of the questions that decide whether a working relationship suits you.
- Fees and costs. Nothing on the register describes how a representative or their firm charges. Ask, and ask for it in writing.
- Suitability. Being on the register says nothing about whether a particular product or plan suits your circumstances. That depends on a proper look at your needs, and on your own weighing of the options.
- How someone works. How often they review, how quickly they respond, whether they explain or simply sell: none of this appears. Past clients, and your own questions, are the better guide.
- Job titles. Titles such as "planner", "consultant", "manager" or "director" are not on the register. A title on a name card is chosen by the person or their firm. The register shows the activities and the firm instead.
- Qualifications. Professional credentials are not shown either. Those have their own lookups, below.
An AI chatbot or a search summary may also describe someone's role or qualifications, sometimes from out-of-date pages. I am in favour of using AI to read documents, as I wrote in AI and financial planning, but for who someone is and whom they act for, go to the register itself.
Checking professional credentials
Professional bodies keep their own lists. These are separate from the MAS register, and a credential is not the same thing as an appointment.
CFA charterholders. CFA Institute runs a member directory at directory.cfainstitute.org. Its terms say it exists to verify CFA Institute membership and charterholder status. Current members alone are listed: someone whose membership has lapsed, been suspended or been revoked will not appear. You are asked to accept the directory's terms before you search, and CFA Institute states that inclusion is not a referral or an endorsement.
Two related MAS checks
The Register of Representatives covers people. Two other MAS pages cover firms.
- The Financial Institutions Directory at eservices.mas.gov.sg/fid lets you look up a financial institution and the activities it carries out. MAS suggests using it to find a firm's official contact details, so you can reach the firm through its own channels and confirm that the person really works with it.
- The Investor Alert List at mas.gov.sg/investor-alert-list names persons and entities that, on information available to MAS, may be or may have been wrongly perceived as authorised by MAS. If a name you have been given appears there, stop and look more closely.
Checking takes a few minutes. It will not tell you whether someone is right for you, but it does tell you whether you are dealing with the person, and the firm, you think you are. The rest is for you to judge, through conversation and over time. If you would like to know more about how I work, my background is on the about page.
Questions
What is a representative number?
A representative number is the reference the MAS Register of Representatives shows for each person on it, and it is the most reliable way to find one particular person. The register's search accepts an exact number or part of a name, so a number avoids confusion between people with similar names.
Is it enough to check the register?
No, the register is a starting point rather than the whole check. It confirms who a person acts for and the activities and types of products shown for them, but not their fees, how they work, or whether a product suits you; for those, ask questions and get the answers in writing.
What if someone is not on the register?
If you cannot find someone, pause before sharing any personal or financial information and contact the firm they say they represent through its official channels. Check the spelling, try the exact representative number, and look up the firm in the MAS Financial Institutions Directory to find its official contact details.
Sources
- MAS, "Financial Institution Representatives Register", read 4 Oct 2026
- MAS, "MAS Issues Responses to Feedback on Representative Notification Framework" (19 Oct 2010), read 4 Oct 2026
- MAS, "Financial Institutions Directory", read 4 Oct 2026
- MAS, "Investor Alert List", read 4 Oct 2026
- CFA Institute, "Member Directory", read 4 Oct 2026
New article drafted October 2026. Approved for publication by PhillipCapital PD, reported by JY 28 Oct 2026. Lightly edited for this site.