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SMU Assistant Professor of Finance Shihao Yu co-authored a working paper with Stanford researchers that identified Polymarket Bitcoin settlement manipulation as a structural problem rather than an inherent flaw in prediction markets, estimating that the mechanics shifted roughly $1.28 million from ordinary participants to more sophisticated traders over the period analysed. Researchers also found recurring patterns of concentrated spot buying or selling on Binance in the final seconds before each contract settled.

*Related Research: Settlement Manipulation in Prediction Markets (working paper)

SMU Assistant Professor of Finance Yu Yang co-authored a study last February which examined the relationship between US bank branch closures and incidents of online fraud and identity theft. The report revealed that for every US bank branch that closed, the number of reported identity theft cases increased by an average of more than 163. Identity theft is the most common data privacy issue, encompassing crimes such as credit card fraud and unauthorised access to bank accounts. Regarding the relevance of this study to the situation in Singapore, Asst Prof Yu pointed out that the banking mechanisms discussed in the report also exist in Singapore, but the degree of influence may be different. She said that branches provide security through face-to-face interaction, where employees may detect suspicious signs and potentially stop a fraud just by asking one more question.

*Related Research: Grand Theft Identity: The Privacy Costs of Digitalization (working paper)

SMU Assistant Professor of Finance Yu Yang co-authored a study last February which examined the relationship between US bank branch closures and incidents of online fraud and identity theft. The report revealed that for every US bank branch that closed, the number of reported identity theft cases increased by an average of more than 163. Identity theft is the most common data privacy issue, encompassing crimes such as credit card fraud and unauthorised access to bank accounts. Regarding the relevance of this study to the situation in Singapore, Asst Prof Yu pointed out that the banking mechanisms discussed in the report also exist in Singapore, but the degree of influence may be different. She said that branches provide security through face-to-face interaction, where employees may detect suspicious signs and potentially stop a fraud just by asking one more question.

*Related Research: Grand Theft Identity: The Privacy Costs of Digitalization (working paper)

SMU Assistant Professor of Finance Shihao Yu co-authored a working paper with Stanford researchers that raised concerns about alleged manipulation of Polymarket's five-minute Bitcoin (CRYPTO: BTC) binary contracts. Researchers found that traders may buy Bitcoin on Binance during the final seconds of a contract to push the settlement price above the opening price, increasing their chances of receiving the $1 payout.

*Related Research: Settlement Manipulation in Prediction Markets (working paper)

A new research by Iris Claus and Leo Krippner associated with the International Monetary Fund's Institute for Capacity Development and IMF–Singapore Regional Training Institute, alongside SMU’s Sim Kee Boon Institute, the University of Waikato and the Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis at the Australian National University, constructs standardised measures of macroeconomic shocks and uncertainty across 14 economies. The research offers policymakers a framework for answering that question by tracking how professional forecasts for growth and inflation change in real time.

In a commentary, Diwa Guinigundo, Member of the Advisory Panel of SMU’s Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics, opined that the uncertainty surrounding the interaction between constitutional impeachment powers and statutory bank secrecy is itself a weakness in the Philippines’ accountability framework. Mr Guinigundo noted that whether these statutory mechanisms may be invoked within the framework of an impeachment proceeding remains a legal question that has not yet been conclusively answered. He added that this unresolved issue deserves definitive clarification. Mr Guinigundo said public officials entrusted with the nation’s highest offices should remain fully accountable under the Constitution, while legitimate expectations of financial privacy should likewise be respected within clearly defined legal boundaries.