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MAS to place up to US$5 bil with private equity and infrastructure fund managers

SINGAPORE (Nov 13): The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) on Tuesday announced initiatives to enhance private markets financing channels, including a programme to place up to US$5 billion for management with private equity (PE) and infrastructure fund managers.

Peter Ong, MAS board member and chairman of Enterprise Singapore, highlighted the new initiatives at the Global Investor Summit of the Singapore FinTech Festival. These initiatives will support the growth of Asian enterprises and the infrastructure financing market.

The US$5 billion private markets programme (PMP) builds on MAS’s current external fund manager programme, which has helped to anchor global asset managers in the public markets space. Under the PMP, MAS will fund PE and infrastructure fund managers who are committed to either deepening their existing presence or establishing a significant presence in Singapore.

MAS also announced the introduction of a large-scale deal-making platform, Match, that curates and matches promising next-generation Asean enterprises with private capital. Match has already generated more than 17,000 matches between 380 participating investors and 840 enterprises. MAS will also work with the industry to establish private market funding platforms that connect growth companies with a wider investor network.

These initiatives are complemented by other efforts to grow the local talent pool while providing flexibility on the hiring of foreign specialists in the PE and venture capital (VC) industry. In addition, the introduction of the Venture Capital Investment Model Agreements (Vima) for early stage VC transactions. The Vima will enable deal and cost efficiencies through a set of standardised and easily accessible documents that investors and enterprises can use and adapt.

Jacqueline Loh, Deputy Managing Director, MAS, says, “MAS has been working closely with the industry to position Singapore as the leading enterprise and infrastructure financing hub in the region. Private markets will be a key source of financing. The PMP will enhance our private markets ecosystem and strengthen the value proposition of Singapore’s asset management industry as a gateway for investors to tap the region’s growth opportunities.”