Over $14m to fund new scholarships at SMU

The scholarships will be funded by the newly-created Ian R. Taylor Memorial Fund.

The Singapore Management University’s Ian R. Taylor Memorial Fund (IRT-MF) will provide support for new scholarships, awards and programmes starting in the 2021-2022 academic year.

The fund is a gift from past and present staff of Vitol Asia, made in honour of the late Ian Roper Taylor, the former chief executive and chairman of the Vitol Group. It is worth a total of S$14m.

The IRT-MF will provide support such as scholarships worth $60,000 to $100,000 for undergraduates, yearly cash awards for leading graduates from Politics, Law & Economics majors, and support for international moot competitions.

The IRT-MF is said to commemorate the life of Taylor as an Oxford graduate and patron of young Asian talent.

“We would like to express our sincere appreciation to Mr Taylor’s family and our donors for setting up this Memorial Fund at SMU and entrusting it to SMU’s stewardship," SMU President Professor Lily Kong said. "The scholarships and awards supported by the Fund will further encourage our students to scale new heights of excellence to become individuals who have an independent mind, are dependable in deeds, think deeply and broadly, and who act to create value at home and abroad.” 

SMU also hinted at a future collaboration with the University of Oxford that will further “reflect the global visions of Mr Taylor.”