SINGAPORE Trends and Developments Contributed by: Lee Woon Shiu and Catherine Cheung, DBS Private Bank
Global Founder Programme (GFP) Launched by the EDB in April 2025, this new initiative is designed for successful entrepreneurs and global founders to create, build and launch new innovative ventures, particularly in technology. Through the GFP, successful entrepreneurs and global founders will be able to seamlessly integrate into Singapore’s start- up ecosystem whilst being offered access to a com - prehensive suite of resources and additional support schemes spearheaded by the EDB and other govern - ment agencies, to enable streamlined business set-up and hiring in Singapore. Founders are invited to apply for the Overseas Net - works & Expertise (ONE) Pass, a five-year employ - ment and residence pass for top talent. Finance and Treasury Centre Incentive (FTC) This is another incentive administered by the EDB, which aims to encourage companies to grow their treasury management capabilities and use Singapore as a base for conducting treasury management activi - ties for the region. Approved FTCs will enjoy a range of benefits, including a concessionary tax rate of 8% or 10% on qualifying income and a withholding tax exemption. International Headquarter Award (IHQ) This EDB-administered incentive aims to encourage companies to set up or expand global or regional headquarters activities in Singapore, such as those for managing, co-ordinating and controlling business activities for a group of companies. The award pro - vides a tax concessionary rate of 5%, 10% or 15% on an approved entity’s qualifying income in excess of the base income. Commonly used structures Many developed nations, including key private banking markets for the Singapore wealth management indus - try such as Taiwan, Indonesia and China, have their own rules on controlled foreign corporations (CFCs) to prevent tax avoidance through the use of offshore low-taxed entities. In recent years, with increased tax transparency, tighter scrutiny and heightened efforts to enforce CFC rules among governments, the use of conventional self-managed offshore companies has become less popular and ineffective for wealth and
succession planning. Singapore is seeing a rise in the use of Singapore companies and trusts, combined with limited liability companies (LLCs), partnerships and VCCs, in sophisticated SFO structures to meet tax incentive requirements that necessitate substan - tial local economic activity. VCC With ring-fenced protection for each sub-fund’s assets and liabilities, the VCC is gaining popularity among fund managers seeking to establish or re- domicile their funds in Singapore. Fund managers are able to issue and redeem shares with greater flexibility, including the option to pay dividends out of capital, which is a feature not available in a typical corporate entity incorporated under Singapore’s company legis - lation. Since the launch of the VCC framework in 2020, 1,000 VCCs have been incorporated or re-domiciled in Singapore by regulated fund managers based in the city state. Trusts Singapore trust law is based on concepts and prin - ciples of English trust law. Because of Singapore’s well-defined and regulated legal framework, wealthy international families still find Singapore trusts attrac - tive despite the fact that the perpetuity period is only 100 years compared to that under Jersey or BVI law, where the trust is permitted to exist for a longer period. Trusts are often used within wider bespoke structures that hold a broader range of assets than just bankable assets, such as real estate, art pieces, digital assets and operating businesses. Bank-owned trust companies are often unable or hesitant to hold non-bankable assets (eg, operating businesses and cryptocurrencies). This is because certain operating businesses are deemed risky, and specific expertise is required for cryptocurrencies, to ensure due compliance with anti-money laundering obligations. It is also a challenge to establish seam - less working relationship with a trusted cryptocur - rency exchange. This trend of holding a broader range of assets has driven the growth of private trust companies (PTCs) as a preferred option for owners of family-owned busi -
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