Singapore bond issuances by Chinese issuers hit $17.88b in 2017

A MAS official thinks that SGX can explore how it can work with Chinese counterparts to support BRI financing.

Bond issuances in Singapore made by Chinese issuers almost doubled to more than $17.88b (US$13b), Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) assistant managing director Ng Yao Loong revealed.

In his keynote remarks at the Singapore Exchange (SGX) Beijing Forum, the official noted that MAS supports Asian enterprises in issuing bonds to meet funding needs through programmes such as the Asian Bond Grant Scheme which defray issuance costs for first-time Asian bond issuers in Singapore.

“The scheme has been successful,” Ng said. “It paved the way for new Asian issuers, supporting Asia’s funding needs.”

Ng believes that Singapore can play a role to aid enterprises in their risk management as the Lion City is the largest FX centre in Asia Pacific with more than half a trillion dollars traded daily on average.

“With most global and Asian banks’ trading teams based in Singapore, enterprises and investors can access diverse hedging strategies and products,” he noted. “Our exchanges, including SGX, also offer a wide range of Asian financial and commodity products for risk management and diversification.”

The official also revealed that Singapore’s assets under management (AUM) jumped 19% to $5.77b (US$2.4t), noting that growth was recorded across traditional and alternative assets, in part driven by higher inflows to Asian markets.

“There is scope for SGX to explore how it can work with Chinese exchanges and intermediaries to further support Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) financing including risk management,” he added.