Singapore enters into Asean investment framework with Malaysia, Thailand

To be implemented in 2014.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Securities Commission of Malaysia, and Securities and Exchange Commission of Thailand signed an agreement today to facilitate the cross-border offering of collective investment schemes to retail investors in the three countries. The signatories expect to implement the framework in the first half of 2014.

With this ASEAN CIS Framework, Singapore-based fund managers will be able to offer their retail funds directly to investors in the other two countries under a streamlined process.

Fund managers using this framework will have to abide by a set of common standards designed to ensure that the retail funds are managed based on industry best practices.

As these standards are broadly in line with Singapore’s domestic requirements governing funds offering, Singapore-based fund managers will be able to offer their existing suite of retail funds to investors in Malaysia and Thailandwithout having to make significant modifications to the funds.

To facilitate the cross-border offering of collective investment schemes to nonretail investors, the three countries have agreed to an arrangement to provide mutual assistance in supervising offerings of such non-retail funds.

Mr Ravi Menon, Managing Director, MAS, said, “This framework will move us a step closer to realising the vision of an integrated capital market in ASEAN.

It will significantly expand the market for Singapore-based fund managers, and give investors in ASEAN access to the wide and innovative range of funds available in Singapore.”