Singapore's financial sector underwent simulated terrorist and cyber attacks yesterday as part of efforts to ensure they had sound plans in place in the event of a crisis.

The large-scale, industry-wide event code-named Exercise Raffles was the fifth to have been staged.

It involved 139 financial institutions, including banks, finance companies, insurers, industry associations, the Singapore Exchange and the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Financial institutions practised established crisis-management and contingency plans in response to simulated scenarios on terrorist and cyber-attacks that had disrupted operations and resulted in the unavailability of services.

Mrs Ong-Ang Ai Boon, the director of the Association of Banks in Singapore, said the exercise provided an opportunity to practise coordination among institutions. "There are good lessons that the industry gained which will contribute towards enhancing the responsiveness and resilience of Singapore's financial sector," she noted.

Mr Ho Kai Weng, the chief executive of the General Insurance Association, said that recent developments in many countries have highlighted the danger from cyber and physical threats.

Life Insurance Association of Singapore executive director Pauline Lim said it has "become increasingly critical for us to ensure that the level of protection we provide members of the community and the integrity of our systems are not compromised".

The exercise was conducted with the support of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Singapore Police Force, the Ministry of Communications and Information, the CyberSecurity Agency of Singapore and the building and facilities management of about 50 buildings.

Yasmine Yahya