Leong said the central bank will broaden and deepen the yuan ecosystem in Singapore, especially by promoting greater activity in the areas of capital markets and asset management.

The central bank will also facilitate cross border market access for Singapore-based financial institutions to meet the yuan financing and investment needs of corporates in China-Singapore flagship cooperation projects in Suzhou Industrial Park and Tianjin Eco-City.

"We are hopeful that the implementation guidelines for such cross-border financing arrangements will be released by the middle of this year," Leong added.

Despite challenges for China's long-term sustainable development, Leong still believed in yuan's internationalization and China's financial reforms.

"With continued strong commitment towards promoting yuan internationalisation and achieving capital account convertibility, coupled with a strong push towards further deepening of its capital market, we are likely to see a greater degree of economic and financial integration between China and the rest of the world, " Leong said.

He added that the growing role of yuan will likely transform the Asian financial landscape in the next 5-10 years.