Clifford Chance Wong
Regulatory aspects and tax considerations
Ho Han Ming, consultant and head of Funds Practice Group, Clifford Chance Wong, Singapore
OVERVIEW OF THE REGULATORY FRAMEWORK IN SINGAPORE
Singapore-based fund managers are generally required to obtain a capital markets services (‘CMS’) licence for fund management under the Securities and Futures Act, Chapter 289 of Singapore (‘SFA’) if they undertake the management of a portfolio of securities or futures contracts on behalf of clients. A fund manager, however, who undertakes fund management on behalf of not more than 30 qualified investors, is exempt from this CMS licensing requirement as an exempt fund manager and is not required to apply for a CMS licence from the local regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (‘MAS’).
A fund which is not offered to the public in Singapore, or if offered, is only offered to accredited investors (this includes a corporation...