The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has announced the first set of measures proposed by its equities market review group to strengthen Singapore’s stock market.
One of the measures proposed is the introduction of tax incentives to attract enterprises and fund managers to list in Singapore. The measures also seek to incentivise the launch and growth of funds that have substantial investments in domestic equities.
The group has already submitted the proposals to Singapore’s prime minister and minister for finance, Lawrence Wong, says MAS in its Feb 13 statement.
In addition, the group has developed a set of measures that will help Singapore enterprises access growth capital and attracting quality enterprises with a regional presence to list in Singapore.
Such enterprises include mid-sized companies that may not have ready access to major capital markets, but could use Singapore as a launch pad for their capital raising. It also includes companies that are already listed in other countries but are keen on seeking a secondary listing in Asia.
The review group, which was launched in August 2024, was to recommend measures within a year. Since its formation, the group was said to have spoken to a range of stakeholders across the capital markets ecosystem to gather feedback and ideas.
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“The review group’s focus is to strengthen the competitiveness of our equities market through a set of proposals to catalyse investor interest and boost the supply of quality listings, and to streamline the regulatory process for initial public offerings,” reads MAS’s statement.
The group will provide more updates on Feb 21.
Read more about the equities market review group:
- SGX shares close 5.8% lower after MAS equities market review group’s first proposal (Feb 14)
- Revitalising SGX: Beyond liquidity injections (Feb 6)
- ‘Not practical’ to rely on sovereign wealth to support, sustain Singapore equities: Gan Kim Yong (Jan 2)
- SGX Group chairman calls for ‘bold and decisive actions’ to solve stock market’s ‘longstanding issues’ (Jan 2)
- Making the Singapore market great again (October 2024)
- Revitalising Singapore equities market ‘not an easy task’, says Chee Hong Tat (September 2024)
- MAS’s equities market review group holds first meeting, unveils 31 workstream members (August 2024)
- MAS launches review group to strengthen equities market; recommendations to come within a year (August 2024)
