Daily Briefing: MAS increases debt servicing flexibility; Kickstarter kicks off in Singapore

And Singapore is the region’s 5th priciest business travel location.

Singapore’s central bank will allow more homeowners to refinance their mortgages without having to comply with a 60 percent cap on their total debt-servicing ratio, giving them additional flexibility in managing their loans. Read more here.

Crowdfunding site Kickstarter made its Asia debut Wednesday with launches in Singapore and Hong Kong, giving entrepreneurs in the two cities the opportunity to raise funding from global investors. By late Wednesday, new projects in Hong Kong and Singapore were seeking funding on the site, including a self-watering indoor planter, invented by a 13-year-old boy, which had attracted 183 backers. Read more here.

Singapore is the fifth most expensive location in Asia Pacific for business travel, while Hong Kong is the most expensive, according to data research provider ECA International. Business travel in Singapore is 20 per cent cheaper than in Hong Kong, thanks to the comparatively lower costs of hotel accommodation, which usually accounts for the bulk of any daily allowance, ECA said in a statement on Wednesday (31 August). Read more here.