Bloomberg: Singapore’s reputation as a haven for the super wealthy is tested

On Monday (17 June), Bloomberg published an opinion piece by columnist Shuli Ren, highlighting that Singapore’s status as a financial hub faces challenges due to a significant money-laundering scandal involving Fujian-origin individuals.

Ren, a former investment banker, noted in her piece that this scandal, which involved 10 arrests in a landmark S$3 billion money laundering case, has led Singaporean authorities to intensify scrutiny on the sources of wealth entering the country, especially through family offices and private banking channels.

She pointed out the term “Singapore-washing” to describe the phenomenon where questionable funds are channelled through Singapore.

She highlighted a substantial increase in wealth flowing from China to Singapore, driven by geopolitical tensions and President Xi Jinping’s ‘common prosperity’ initiative. In 2022 alone, Singapore attracted S$435 billion in new funds, equivalent to 70% of its GDP.

She emphasized that Singapore faces a dilemma: maintaining its global financial hub status while ensuring stringent regulatory oversight.

In response to the S$3 billion case, Singaporean authorities are intensifying scrutiny on wealth management activities, particularly targeting family offices and private banking operations.

She contrasted the latest scandal with previous issues like the 1MDB case involving Goldman Sachs Group Inc., noting that now the entire Singaporean financial sector and its money-laundering regulations are under scrutiny.

“To be sure, as a small, open economy, Singapore is structurally exposed to money laundering, especially if it wants to develop wealth management.”

Despite potential impacts on banking sector growth and competitiveness, Ms Ren acknowledged that Singapore values its reputation as a transparent and compliant jurisdiction, in contrast to Dubai’s more permissive regulatory approach.

Earlier, in a LinkedIn post, Singaporean critic Andy Wong Ming Jun characterized Ms Ren’s article as an embarrassment for the Singaporean government and a reflection of media censorship in the city-state.

Mr Wong believed that back in February, his article “Singapore Begins To Pay The Price for ‘China Cuckooing’” published by Asia Sentinel was the catalyst needed to elevate mainstream scrutiny on both the term “Singapore-Washing” and the phenomenon itself.

He highlighted that it took four months for Singaporean state media to finally cover the issue by republishing Bloomberg’s piece, underscoring a significant delay in local media coverage of the issues he addresses, suggesting a lack of independence in reporting on sensitive matters.

10 Fujian-origin foreigners convicted in S$3 billion dollar case, 17 suspects on the run

In August 2023, Singapore authorities arrested nine men and one woman in an island-wide operation.

All ten individuals, hailing from Fujian, China and holding various passports, were implicated in the S$3 billion case initiated by tip-offs in 2021 about foreigners using forged documents in Singapore.

Following their arrests, authorities seized billions of dollars in assets linked to the offenders and other fugitives. These assets included cash, luxury properties, branded goods, cryptocurrency, and alcohol.

The offenders all pleaded guilty to various crimes, including money laundering, using forged bank documents, and other related offences such as lying to the Manpower Ministry to obtain work passes to enter Singapore.

They were sentenced to jail terms ranging from 13 to 17 months.

The 10th criminal, 36-year-old Vanuatu national Su Jianfeng, was sentenced to the longest jail term on 10 June.

Responding to media inquiries, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority (ICA) confirmed on 16 June that three other convicted individuals—Zhang Ruijin, Chen Qingyuan, and Lin Baoying—have been deported to Cambodia and barred from re-entering Singapore.

Despite all ten arrested individuals having been sentenced to jail, with eight deported so far, an earlier police statement confirmed that 17 individuals linked to the S$3 billion case are still under investigation and have fled Singapore.

The S$3 billion in cash and assets seized or issued with the prohibition of disposal orders in the case belonged to 27 individuals, not just the 10 convicted.

Police earlier told Singapore’s state media, The Straits Times, that they are working with foreign law enforcement agencies to tackle the transnational crimes.

The SPF has been actively sharing information through global policing networks, including seeking assistance on the whereabouts of the wanted persons, two of whom currently have Interpol red notices issued against them.

Several individuals, including Su Yongcan and Wang Huoqiang, are under Interpol red notices due to their involvement in the S$3 billion case linked to a gambling syndicate.

Su Yongcan, associated with a Dubai property scandal, had assets worth over S$161 million seized, while Wang Huoqiang’s assets amounting to S$5.2 million were frozen.

Additionally, Su Shuiming and Su Shuijun, businessmen linked to cross-border gambling, fled Singapore amid investigations.

Another figure, Su Binghai, and associates abruptly left Singapore during the probe, with ties to the gambling syndicate and significant investments in Greater China.

Wang Bingang, the purported mastermind of an illegal online gambling operation operating from the Philippines and Cambodia, continues to evade authorities. He previously lived on the same street in Singapore’s Tanglin area as former Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

According to Chinese media reports, Wang Bingang was sentenced by a Chinese court to three years in prison and fined 3 million yuan. His sentence was concluded on February 15, 2018.