Singapore, the financial hub for Southeast Asia

In Southeast Asia, BNP Paribas has core banking licences in all markets in which it operates – Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Singapore is the Bank’s hub for Southeast Asia, where it has been present since 1968. 

In addition to a complete range of banking services, we offer asset service solutions for liquid alternatives, private assets and traditional investments and have grown along with the development of Singapore as a major fund centre. 

Our local experts and services for Singapore funds

Since 2008, we have become one of the leading providers of securities and asset services in Singapore. 

We have comprehensive securities services expertise in fund administration, trustee, in Singaporean fund distribution vehicles and regional Asian fund schemes enabling investments in traditional, private capital or liquid alternatives/hedge funds. 

Our commitment to the market is evidenced by the awards won over the years and our experts’ active participation with the regulatory body and industry associations to support developments in the Singapore market. 

Our team of 155+ local experts is strongly supported by our global infrastructure to ensure robust follow-the-sun processes. Leveraging Singapore’s status as a regional fund distribution hub, we support our clients to expand to and from Asia into this fast-growing region and globally. 

Our core services for Singapore funds

In addition to our comprehensive custody offer, we deliver the full suite of services for funds: fund administration, middle office, transfer agency for local or cross-border distribution, trustee, fund dealing services, derivatives execution and clearing, as well as performance, risk and ESG analytics. 

We cover all asset classes, from traditional to liquid alternatives/hedge funds, as well as private capital funds (private debt, private equity, real estate and infrastructure). 

We can also support clients with an integrated banking offer encompassing forex, share class hedging, securities lending, cash and collateral management, liquidity and financing solutions for funds. 

Specific services for funds in Singapore

• Full suite of solutions for Variable Capital Companies (VCCs) (open and closed ended schemes), Collective Investment schemes (CIS) (restricted and authorised), all types of Singaporean funds eligible under the ASEAN CIS framework, common trust funds, common fund structure for alternatives clients 
• Support for cross-border fund distribution in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand -through our transfer agency’s connectivity with local distributors-, and in Europe 
• End-to-end servicing for liquid alternatives/hedge funds, private capital funds, from fund administration to limited partners management and associated banking solutions 
• Financing solutions embedded within our administration offer 
• Shariah custody solution offering a return mechanism on cash balances 
• Systematic performance fee calculation for liquid alternatives/hedge funds and private capital funds
• Loan administration solutions for both fund managers and asset owners dealing with syndicated loans and direct lending
• Investor services for alternatives: fund and investor registry, reporting including capital account statements to investors and FATCA/AEOI reporting support 

A fund regime with modern structuring alternatives…

• Mutual funds or Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) can be marketed to all types of investors
• Funds can be structured as unit trusts or Variable Capital Companies (VCCs)
• Specific sets of rules for money market funds, capital-guaranteed funds and index-tracking funds

…with high standards in a business-friendly environment

• Fund management companies must be registered with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), as a Licensed Fund Management Company (LFMC), Registered Fund Management Company (RFMC), or Venture Capital Fund Manager (VCFM) to carry out regulated activities with various types of investors
• A custodian and local administrator are mandatory
• Subject to standards related to
  • Compliance and oversight requirements
  • Detailed investment rules (asset eligibility, concentration, diversification, derivatives and efficient portfolio management techniques)
  • Borrowing restrictions (10% limit, redemption payments to be made within one month of a redemption request)
  • Singapore Financial Reporting Standards and Recommended Accounting Practice (RAP 7), with at least monthly net asset value calculation and disclosure requirements (prospectus, half-yearly financial statement, audited annual financial statement)
• Eligible for the cross border offers of Collective Investment Schemes within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (“ASEAN CIS”) along with Malaysia, Thailand and Philippines
• Tax incentives schemes are available, subject to qualifying conditions
• A full member of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and Financial Action Task Force (FATF) with an extensive network of double tax agreements and bilateral investment treaties

Sustainable finance: the state of play

According to a survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2022, managed assets with ESG overlay in Singapore constituted 55% of total Asset Under Management.

In December 2020, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued Guidelines on Environmental Risk Management applying to asset managers and covering governance and strategy, research and portfolio composition, portfolio risk management, stewardship and disclosure. Since June 2022 financial institutions have to ‘comply or explain’ with this regulation.

In December 2022, MAS launched the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance (Taxonomy) which sets out detailed thresholds and criteria for defining green and transition activities that contribute to climate change mitigation. The Taxonomy is built across eight focus sectors (Energy, Real Estate, Transportation, etc) with a traffic light system that defines “green”, “transition” (or “amber”) and “ineligible” activities.

MAS is currently working on a roadmap to adopt by 2025 the globally-recognised International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework which extends disclosure to broader sustainability topics (not just climate).

A range of services that support the entire lifecycle of the fund. This includes fund administration, Fund dealing services, Investor services, custody, banking solutions, FX, financing and global markets services.

An array of dedicated regimes for liquid alternative strategies in Singapore…

• Hedge funds and funds of hedge funds (FoHF) can be structured as VCC or limited partnerships
• Either as a stand-alone or as an umbrella fund with multiple sub-funds
• In addition to Singapore VCC fund structures, we support fund structures in other jurisdictions, e.g. Cayman Islands, British Virgin Islands.

…with flexible rules tailored for specific products and distribution models

• No vehicle authorisation required but registration on the list of restricted schemes is possible provided that:
  • The offer is made in or accompanied by an information memorandum that contains salient information about the restricted scheme, and
  • The manager is licensed or regulated to manage the scheme assets in the jurisdiction of its principal place of business and is fit and proper
• No investment or borrowing restrictions
• Can only be offered to relevant persons (including accredited investors) or at a minimum of SGD 200,000 per transaction

Sustainable finance: the state of play

According to a survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2022, managed assets with ESG overlay in Singapore constituted 55% of total Asset Under Management.

In December 2020, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued Guidelines on Environmental Risk Management applying to asset managers and covering governance and strategy, research and portfolio composition, portfolio risk management, stewardship and disclosure.   Since June 2022 financial institutions have to ‘comply or explain’ with this regulation.

In December 2022, MAS launched the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance (Taxonomy) which sets out detailed thresholds and criteria for defining green and transition activities that contribute to climate change mitigation. The Taxonomy is built across eight focus sectors (Energy, Real Estate, Transportation, etc) with a traffic light system that defines “green”, “transition” (or “amber”) and “ineligible” activities.

MAS is currently working on a roadmap to adopt by 2025 the globally-recognised International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework which extends disclosure to broader sustainability topics (not just climate).

Diverse fund structuring alternatives and practices…

• Private equity, private credit, closed-ended real estate or infrastructure funds can be structured as limited partnerships, VCCs or private limited companies
• Limited partnerships from offshore centres are also commonly used, notably as feeders of Singapore master corporate funds which can qualify for double taxation agreements

…with  a range of flexible options

• Requirements applicable to the manager – which can be either a LFMC or RFMC – are proportionate to the number of qualified investors and assets under management (maximum of 30 investors, of which no more than 15 can be funds or limited partnerships for RFMC, and less than SGD 250 million of assets under management)
• Fund managers managing real assets can benefit from a licensing exemption
• Singapore private capital funds can either be:
  • Approved as an authorised scheme required to register a prospectus, or
  • Exempt from authorisation and prospectus registration, when offers are made exclusively to qualified investors or through private placement
• No legal minimum or maximum investment periods, amounts or transfers of investment in fund

Sustainable finance: the state of play

According to a survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in 2022, managed assets with ESG overlay in Singapore constituted 55% of total Asset Under Management.

In December 2020, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) issued Guidelines on Environmental Risk Management applying to asset managers and covering governance and strategy, research and portfolio composition, portfolio risk management, stewardship and disclosure.   Since June 2022 financial institutions have to ‘comply or explain’ with this regulation.

In December 2022, MAS launched the Singapore-Asia Taxonomy for Sustainable Finance (Taxonomy) which sets out detailed thresholds and criteria for defining green and transition activities that contribute to climate change mitigation. The Taxonomy is built across eight focus sectors (Energy, Real Estate, Transportation, etc) with a traffic light system that defines “green”, “transition” (or “amber”) and “ineligible” activities.

MAS is currently working on a roadmap to adopt by 2025 the globally-recognised International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) framework which extends disclosure to broader sustainability topics (not just climate).

Discover our Singapore market expertise in mutual funds, liquid alternatives/hedge funds and private capital funds