How Singapore’s not-really-rich have been burned by Swiber bonds

SINGAPORE (Sept 20): When Elaine Tham signed an “accredited investor” form with her bank in Singapore two years ago, she took a fateful step toward losing all the money she had set aside for her children’s education.

Based on her financial profile and investment priorities -- her need for $150,000 to pay university fees -- a local branch of HSBC Holdings Plc had initially categorized her as a “medium risk” investor. But because the value of her property and car entitled her to “accredited” status, a category reserved for wealthy investors, Tham says she was persuaded to take a riskier path. She agreed to invest $250,000 in the bonds of a small Singapore energy-services company, Swiber Holdings Ltd., which said in August that it won’t be able to repay its bondholders.

Tham is one of many Singaporeans who lost money by investing in Swiber, which sold an unusually high proportion of its bonds to the wealthy clients of banks in Singapore. Amid signs last week that more local energy-services companies are being dragged down by the prolonged slump in global oil prices, some are urging quick action to plug loopholes in Singapore’s investor-protection rules.

---

Related Stories

• Suntec REIT biggest beneficiary from MAS’s ‘looser’ leverage, ICR rules: OCBC
• Banks in Singapore can withstand multiple shocks: MAS
• Changes in ICR, leverage to come into effect immediately, with additional disclosures in March

---