Singapore is introducing a new policy in its endeavour to entice more global investors to invest in the city.
The policy was proclaimed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority (ACRA).
Drafted to provide fund management companies extra leeway for issuing of shares and dividend payouts, the policy is slated to be introduced as an offshoot of the Variable Capital Companies (VCC) structure.
Meanwhile, the MAS declared the unveiling of a grant policy to bolster the structure and motivate fund managers to join the bandwagon. To signify the unveiling of the policy, 20 investment funds were incorporated.
MAS assistant managing director, Development and International, Benny Chey said that this was indeed a remarkable development in the emergence of Singapore as an epicentre of full-service international fund management and domiciliation.
The VCC Act is expected to facilitate asset managers to domicile their funds in Singapore by enabling the creation of a solitary guideline to contain a reservoir of assets and various sub-funds, and providing more privacy.
Although several asset management firms have their establishments based in Singapore, a large portion of their funds are still registered in offshore destinations. The latest policy provides investors more leeway and can be utilised for both conventional as well as substitutive tactics.
In 2018, the city-state’s asset management sector expanded over 5 percent to SGD 3.4 trillion ($2.5 trillion), according to a report by the MAS.
Apart from that, Singapore also looks to cash in on the turmoil currently occurring from several months in Hong Kong, its adversary in the neighbourhood over a long period of time.
As more and more asset management organisations based in Hong Kong are gradually turning their attention towards Singapore, the latest policy acts as the ideal foil for the nation state’s prevailing legal guidelines of limited collaborations, unit trusts and private entities.