Singapore GIC and Temasek losses; Consequences for CPF members
It has been recently reported that Singapore's GIC has lost about $S 50 billion in value, while Temasek’s assets “shrunk “ by about $S 38 billion. The losses are thought to be unrealised.
How might these losses affect Central Provident Fund (CPF) members in need of liquidity, whose demands may require liquidation of these impaired assets?
The connection between the CPF, Temasek and GIC is best explained by these excerpts from articles published in the Business Times Singapore:
The Republic's foreign reserves rose again in May to reach S$60.5 billion, up from S$59.3 billion in April. Though the May rise was marginal, the reserves of S$60.5 billion represent a creditable 19.6 per cent expansion over May last year……The bulging reserves stem from accumulated CPF savings, the annual budgetary surpluses, surpluses from statutory bodies and the yearly balance of payments surpluses attributable to inflows of monetary capital and foreign investment. The nation, particularly through the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), invests these assets in foreign equities, bonds, fixed deposits of banks, gold and properties.
(Business Times Singapore,14 August 1992,, Foreign reserves up 19.6pc over 12 months)
AND
Creating the GIC
(By January 1981), Singapore's reserves had been estimated at around the figure of $15.84 billion and MAS was finding itself under fire by PM Lee for allowing Singapore's reserves to accumulate beyond what was necessary to meet its legal obligations. PM Lee had said: 'As our financial reserves grew with increased Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings (Singapore's pension scheme) and yearly public sector surpluses, the MAS was not investing these funds long term for best returns.'
Dr Goh soon found himself to be a very busy man. In the months that followed, he tried to bring in foreign experts to review the investment portfolios of the MAS and the Currency Board. He eventually settled on NM Rothschild & Sons, a British investment bank, which was invited to undertake the job.
Barely a month after the commencement of the Rothschild consultancy, the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation(GIC) was established under the Companies Act, in May 1981: its main responsibility was to manage the Singapore government's long-term foreign reserves, a task previously handled by the MAS.
(Business Times Singapore, 9 July 2007)
There is also this note from the IMF:
Gross debt is issued to the Central Provident Fund (CPF) and as part of the Singapore Government Securities (SGS) program. The government invests the proceeds raised through this issuance in foreign assets through the GIC. The SGS is a program started in 1998 to encourage the development of a corporate debt market by providing a liquid government bond market that could be used to benchmark the prices of other assets.
(Source: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2006/cr06150.pdf)
Therefore, it could well be that there is a situation now present where CPF liabilities are in excess of the assets from which they are meant to be satisfied.
END
How might these losses affect Central Provident Fund (CPF) members in need of liquidity, whose demands may require liquidation of these impaired assets?
The connection between the CPF, Temasek and GIC is best explained by these excerpts from articles published in the Business Times Singapore:
The Republic's foreign reserves rose again in May to reach S$60.5 billion, up from S$59.3 billion in April. Though the May rise was marginal, the reserves of S$60.5 billion represent a creditable 19.6 per cent expansion over May last year……The bulging reserves stem from accumulated CPF savings, the annual budgetary surpluses, surpluses from statutory bodies and the yearly balance of payments surpluses attributable to inflows of monetary capital and foreign investment. The nation, particularly through the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC), invests these assets in foreign equities, bonds, fixed deposits of banks, gold and properties.
(Business Times Singapore,14 August 1992,, Foreign reserves up 19.6pc over 12 months)
AND
Creating the GIC
(By January 1981), Singapore's reserves had been estimated at around the figure of $15.84 billion and MAS was finding itself under fire by PM Lee for allowing Singapore's reserves to accumulate beyond what was necessary to meet its legal obligations. PM Lee had said: 'As our financial reserves grew with increased Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings (Singapore's pension scheme) and yearly public sector surpluses, the MAS was not investing these funds long term for best returns.'
Dr Goh soon found himself to be a very busy man. In the months that followed, he tried to bring in foreign experts to review the investment portfolios of the MAS and the Currency Board. He eventually settled on NM Rothschild & Sons, a British investment bank, which was invited to undertake the job.
Barely a month after the commencement of the Rothschild consultancy, the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation(GIC) was established under the Companies Act, in May 1981: its main responsibility was to manage the Singapore government's long-term foreign reserves, a task previously handled by the MAS.
(Business Times Singapore, 9 July 2007)
There is also this note from the IMF:
Gross debt is issued to the Central Provident Fund (CPF) and as part of the Singapore Government Securities (SGS) program. The government invests the proceeds raised through this issuance in foreign assets through the GIC. The SGS is a program started in 1998 to encourage the development of a corporate debt market by providing a liquid government bond market that could be used to benchmark the prices of other assets.
(Source: http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/scr/2006/cr06150.pdf)
Therefore, it could well be that there is a situation now present where CPF liabilities are in excess of the assets from which they are meant to be satisfied.
END
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