S’pore stocks are ‘longer-term investments’, not just for ‘short-term punting’: Chee Hong Tat

Retail investors should see the Singapore stock market as a venue for “longer-term investments” and not just “short-term punting”, says Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat at a media doorstop on July 21.

“We do want to see more participation from retail investors, not to see the stock market for short-term punting, but really how to make longer-term investments — to grow their investment nest egg, which I think will also be helpful for the young and the middle-aged before they grow older, [in order] to provide better retirement,” says Chee, who is also deputy chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

MAS announced on July 21 that it had appointed Avanda Investment Management, Fullerton Fund Management and JP Morgan Asset Management as the first batch of asset managers that will launch fund strategies under the Equity Market Development Programme (EQDP).

MAS will place a combined initial sum of $1.1 billion with the three firms, out of $5 billion that has been set aside for the EQDP.

Speaking to the media, Chee notes that the plan is “not just about injecting funds” into the local bourse, but there is also a “developmental objective”.

According to MAS, over 100 asset managers have indicated interest in the EQDP since it was announced in February. The three chosen firms proposed fund strategies that are aligned with the EQDP’s objectives, and the asset managers have also committed to expand or contribute to the growth of the asset management and research capabilities in Singapore, says MAS.

“MAS is now discussing with some of these asset managers [and] going through the proposals to see which are the ones that will fit well with our objectives of [not only] injecting more liquidity into the Singapore market, but also being able to develop our local fund management industry,” says Chee.

By end-2025, MAS expects to announce a second batch of asset managers that will manage a portion of the remaining funds under the EQDP.

MAS also announced on July 21 a $50 million commitment to enhance the Grant for Equity Market Singapore (GEMS) scheme, which has been extended from end-2026 to end-2028. This includes additional funding for research reports that cover pre-initial public offering (IPO) firms and newly-listed companies.

To broaden investor outreach and engagement, especially among younger investors, a portion of the $50 million will be made available to research houses to defray costs of disseminating research via digital media.

The GEMS Scheme aims to provide greater support to analysts who cover these “different companies”, says Chee, enabling them to produce more reports of “better quality” that investors will find useful.

According to Chee, this goes “hand in hand” with the equities market review group’s February announcement that the local bourse will move towards “a more disclosure-based regime” with “proper safeguards and investor awareness”.

Among the proposals mentioned then were consolidating listing suitability and prospectus disclosures review functions in Singapore Exchange Regulation (SGX RegCo), simplifying requirements for issuers seeking secondary listings in Singapore and even removing the financial “watch-list”.

MAS announced on July 21 that it is considering additional measures to strengthen investor protection by enhancing avenues for investor recourse. The regulator will consult on proposals to help investors pursuing civil recourse action over cases involving market misconduct, including setting up a grant scheme to defray legal costs.

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