Wealthy families are trading global uncertainty for Singapore’s regulatory rigour, driving record inflows and a revitalised stock exchange
She cited the recent case of a Northeast Asian tech founder with US$50 million in assets who decided to restructure his family holdings and consolidate cross-border investments by setting up a corporate structure in the city state.
To him, Singapore was a natural choice as a financial safe haven – offering, in Tanaporn’s words, “long-term succession planning under a stable, English common law jurisdiction”, without requiring him to relocate.
That combination of stability and accessibility was a common refrain among wealth managers who told This Week in Asia that inflows into Singapore had steadily picked up among high- and ultra-high-net-worth individuals seeking to manage geopolitical risk.
The island country’s stoic positioning amid a turbulent global environment has also contributed to the recent resurgence of its stock exchange, with the benchmark Straits Times Index crossing the 5,000-mark for the first time in February. That same month, total deposits in the city state hit a record US$1.61 trillion, while Singapore’s asset management market grew 12 per cent year on year to S$6.07 trillion (US$4.5 trillion) in 2024.
The number of single-family offices exceeded 2,000 by the end of 2024, up 43 per cent from the year before. Family offices are vehicles set up by wealthy families to manage investments, succession planning, philanthropy and art collections.
Source: News - South China Morning Post
