By SGN | 14 Apr 2026
Mark Williams, who oversees non-financial regulatory reporting for Global Banking and Markets for Asia at Goldman Sachs, has the unusual distinction of calling Singapore home twice.
His first chapter began in 2017, when he arrived with his wife and their family, as he joined the firm’s Asia regulatory team. A brief return to London followed, but the move confirmed that Singapore was where they belonged. On returning, Mark says the decision to return was as much about family, as it was about professional opportunity.
An idyllic upbringing
Mark grew up alongside his brothers; James, his twin, and Matthew, who was older and later on would also end up settling in Singapore.
The siblings’ native Kent, a beautiful county tucked away in the English countryside, provided the ideal backdrop for their childhood. Their father, a master mariner, was mostly at sea, while their mother, a pastry chef, tended to the children.
As the Williams family lived in the suburbs, and far away from the city, the children enjoyed a relaxing, rural upbringing, where family was the main focus. They attended the village primary school, where the classroom sizes were much smaller compared to today’s institutions. What the classroom lacked in terms of size, it more than made up for, with its strong sense of community.
Mark’s first brush with a larger academic setting was during his time at an international school in the UK, where tradition and discipline were greatly prioritised. He credits this institution for having shaped his identity and outlook on life.
Additionally, the school offered a wide array of sports, which gave Mark and his twin brother a chance to try their hand at different games. “We played quite a lot of rugby,” he admits.
University was Mark’s initial brush with the concrete jungle of a metropolitan city. Enrolling in the prestigious Mountbatten Program, a global work-study initiative, proved to be his ticket out of the country. Here, he landed a placement at JP Morgan in New York.
It was also where he met his future wife, who had enrolled in the same program.
Upon returning to London, Mark joined Goldman Sachs in 2007.
Singapore, Act One
“We were ready for a new challenge.”
After 10 years in London, Mark and his family were ready for a new adventure. “We were looking for a place that offered both professional growth and a great environment to raise our young family,” he explains. “Singapore ticked every box: a stable economy, safety, diversity, and opportunity.”
With a new assignment in hand, he moved to Singapore in 2017, with his family in tow.
“The multiculturalism is what stood out to me the most,” he recalls. “It seems like an intuitive quality given Singapore’s history, but it’s much more evident when you live here, and see how people from different cultures live, interact, and function alongside each other.”
“Functioning healthcare? Tick. Safe and efficient transportation? Tick. Settling housing matters? Tick. Straightforward visa process? Tick. Everything in Singapore just works.”
Mark also values Singapore for its strategic location, as he can travel to different countries seamlessly.
“It might seem ridiculous, but a lot of expats will resonate with this: getting home from Changi Airport takes no time at all. In contrast, trying to get home from Heathrow always takes up a ridiculous amount of time,” he says, with a chuckle.
Domestically, getting around Singapore is a cakewalk. “It’s a small island, so getting to places like Sentosa or Woodlands, which are considered far-off, is still very easy. You can go from downtown to the Central Business District to Tanjong Pagar, or from concrete jungle to nature retreat in a matter of minutes.”
Mark also shares that he had no trouble adapting to Singapore.
“Moving to a new country with very young children in tow is always daunting, but living in Singapore is so straightforward. The government has made a wealth of information about moving to and living in Singapore easily accessible and available,”” he shares.
All these factors were key in convincing Mark not just to extend his initial stay in Singapore, but also to eventually return to the country.
A fulfilling social life
Most of Mark’s connections flourished within his condominium community. His daughters were involved in swimming and gymnastics, while he played rugby.
Being parents to young children in a condominium with other international families helped Mark easily form friendships. “We were fortunate to develop meaningful relationships with our neighbours. Here, people look out for each other, and come together during difficult times.”
One such moment was during COVID, when everyone rallied around each other. “This type of support system is like an extension of your family,” he shares.
Besides neighbours, Mark has had the privilege of leaning on someone who made Singapore home long before he did: his older brother, Matthew.
“My brother and I are very close, and so I leaned on him a fair bit before making any major decisions,” he shares.
And as far as Singaporeans themselves are concerned, Mark was pleasantly surprised to see how patriotic they can be.
“They’re very proud of their heritage, and this comes across clearly in the way they celebrate major milestones,” he mentions. “They’re also highly welcoming of other cultures and nationalities, so they will invite you to be a part of things. There is no exclusion whatsoever.”
A brief detour, and Singapore 2.0
A new work opportunity would bring Mark back to his home country. However, once back in the UK, the family quickly registered that the grass was in fact, not greener on the other side. Mark had to commute back and forth between London, where his office was based, to a neighbourhood two hours from the capital, where his family lived.
His children also had to adapt to a different way of life.
“Being away from Singapore helped us realise that it truly is our home,” Mark reflects.
After fourteen months in the UK, he decided to return to Singapore with his family.
“As I got off the plane and walked through Changi Airport, I got flashbacks to our previous time in Singapore,” he recalls. “I experienced conflicting emotions; mostly because we hadn’t left Singapore all that long ago, but also because it felt like we were returning home.”
“Moving back to Singapore was more enjoyable, because this time, we knew what we were doing, and how things worked,” he says,
The smoothest transition by far, occurred at Tanglin Trust School, where his daughters had been studying prior to the family’s detour in the UK.
“Schooling was a big part of why we returned. We’re very fortunate that the Tanglin Trust School’s administration was more than accommodating of our situation, and let our daughters enroll back in without any interruption to learning,” he shares.
The antidote to isolation
Mark is a mentor and mental health advocate in his workplace. “I’m deeply passionate about advancing conversations around mental health and driving our firm’s efforts in this area,” he says. “My role is to help people know where to turn for support, connecting them to the right tools, resources, and, when needed, a listening ear.”
His commitment to this cause is personal. “The loss of a close friend to mental health struggles profoundly shaped my perspective. It reminded me how vital it is to talk openly about wellbeing and to build supportive communities at work.”
As a mentor to both local and international talent, Mark emphasises the importance of connection and trust. “The best mentorships are built on genuine relationships,” he says. “You need to feel comfortable with the person giving you advice — and as a mentor, you need to be relatable. You lose connection with people if they cannot relate to you.”
Coaching people as they grow from analysts to VPs, he adds, is one of the most rewarding parts of his job. “It keeps people engaged, not just in their roles, but in the firm’s broader vision and purpose, he mentions.
For newcomers to Singapore, Mark has simple but wise advice: stay open.
“It’s easy for expats to get caught up in the comfort of the expat bubble,” he says. “But the longer you live here, the more you’ll get out of Singapore if you look beyond that. There’s so much to learn from the local community, about culture, values, and how things really work here.”
Committed to the Lion City
After a year into his second stint in Singapore, Mark is exactly where he wants to be; growing talent, championing mental health, and reinforcing his roots in the city that twice became home.
“I came here for work,” he reflects, “but what’s kept me here is everything else: the people, the community, and the sense that this is a place where you can really build a life.”
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About Mark
After nearly two decades at Goldman Sachs and two stints in Singapore, British regulatory expert Mark Williams is committed to reinforcing his roots in the Lion City, where he is busy championing mental health in the workplace, and mentoring the next generation of talent.
