SINGAPORE (THE BUSINESS TIMES) - An industry body has launched a new online portal to help investment management professionals working in Singapore to upskill.

The online portal - iLearn - centralises curated training programmes for these professionals, the Investment Management Association of Singapore (IMAS) announced on Monday (May 4).

These modules are accredited by the Institute of Banking and Finance (IBF) and fulfil the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) regulatory requirement.

The upskilling courses are also recognised under the IBF-Financial Training Scheme and are thus eligible for an enhanced course subsidy - 95 per cent with IBF credit - and a training allowance grant of $15 per hour.

The subsidy and grant are part of MAS' support package to defray training expenses and encourage financial institutions, including investment managers, to upskill workers amid the downtime in business activity.

IMAS members will also enjoy exclusive discounted rates for the courses.

The association has partnered Nanyang Polytechnic for the development and delivery of the e-learning programmes and provide customised online modules. More online courses are expected to be rolled out later.

Ms Susan Soh, chair of IMAS' executive committee, said: "With the current situation in mind, IMAS and its partners have worked tirelessly to fast-track the launch so that more professionals can take advantage of the e-learning modules while working from home."

IMAS chief executive Carmen Wee said that a market gap in the provision of customised training for the employees of investment management companies was observed.

"This led to the development of the iLearn portal, where we hope to work with like-minded partners to structure training, either in the form of online or classroom learning, to support the continuous professional development needs of the investment management sector and help them remain competitive," Ms Wee explained.