Can Singapore Private Banking Replace Swiss Private Banks?
Singapore private banking has grown massively over the past decade. Assets under management at Singapore private banks have grown to around 300Bn, 6 times what they were 10 years ago. It is estimated that Singapore manages around 5% of the world’s private wealth, while Swiss private banking manages around a quarter. Singapore has benefited from tight bank secrecy regulation, in addition to a rise in the number of Asian millionaires, especially the type that want to invest with private banks and financial instruments rather than in property. Yet in response to demand from the G20 group of developed countries, Singapore has promised to rethink its ultra private secrecy laws. Like Switzerland, Singapore has to walk the tightrope between keeping its sovereignty and international acceptance of its laws and banks. One of the reasons why Singapore has grown is because it already was a large financial center in its own right. Unlike smaller tax havens and dependencies of other countries which
