SGX CEO sees growing collaborations with China after reopening

The ETF Link between Shenzhen Stock Exchange and SGX was launched in 2022.

China’s reopening will help grow more opportunities for ETFs and other financial services for Singapore Exchange, the bourse’s CEO said.

At the CGS China-ASEAN Business Leaders Summit 2023, SGX Group CEO Loh Boon Chye said the further opening up of China’s bond markets to international investors will create more room for collaboration between SGX and China. Currently, Loh said the bourse has 15% Greater China bond issuers. 

Amongst these partnerships, Loh said there could be an increasing demand from investors to have opportunities in China’s onshore bond markets.

“We believe there are many more opportunities for SGX to play an active role in the internationalisation of China’s bond markets, especially as China increases its pace in green finance,” said Loh.

He also highlighted the ETF Link between Shenzhen Stock Exchange and SGX that was launched in December 2022, which made way for investors in China and Singapore to get access to ETFs in each other’s markets. 

The strong reception in China shows Chinese investors’ appetite for ASEAN, said Loh. He hoped to grow this link to include more ETFs across different investment themes such as ESG and regional equities to cater to global investors. 

Amongst the global firms listed on SGX, 35% are from Greater China and 30% from Southeast Asia.