Singapore – Page 4 – Duane Morris and Selvam

May 13, 2022 by Duane Morris and Selvam

Rise of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) in Singapore

During the recent Budget announcement in February this year, Minister of Finance Lawrence Wong stated that Singapore will aim to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by or around 2050, in line with our commitment to address the challenges of climate change.

Presently, the bulk of Singapore’s energy supply comes from natural gas, and the power sector accounts for about 40 percent of the country’s total emissions. This paired with growing environmental awareness in Singapore have started putting pressure on organisations to meet clean energy goals as investors and customers become more vocal about the importance of using green energy. This growing pressure from stakeholders has led to a rise in the use of Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) by businesses, as a means of fulfilling their sustainability commitments and reducing their carbon footprint.

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May 13, 2022July 25, 2022 by Duane Morris and Selvam

区块链技术和NFT在新加坡的发展和规范

自2008年第一个数字货币比特币诞生以来，区块链技术在各个领域的应用都有了长足的发展。新加坡作为亚洲金融中心之一，也吸引了众多软件技术人员和投资者从事区块链技术相关的金融行业，包括NFT （非同质化代币）。NFT 市场既可以是Axie Infinity这种可以赚取数字资产的游戏平台，也可以是NBA TopShot 这种收藏品交易平台，还可以是Decentraland 和Earth 2这种可以进行数字财产买卖的元宇宙平台。

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May 13, 2022May 13, 2022 by Duane Morris and Selvam

An Overview on Development and Regulations of Blockchain Technology and NFTs in Singapore

Since the birth of the first digital currency, Bitcoin, in 2008, blockchain technology has developed significantly in various fields. As one of the financial hubs of Asia, Singapore has also attracted a wide range of software professionals and investors in the financial services industry involving blockchain technologies and nonfungible tokens (NFT). NFT marketplaces can be either gaming platforms for earning digital assets like Axie Infinity, collectibles trading platforms like NBA TopShot or metaverse platforms like Decentraland and Earth 2 where virtual properties can be bought and sold.

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May 5, 2022 by Duane Morris and Selvam

新加坡私募和风投行业系列 – 简介篇

近年来，新加坡已迅速成长为全球资产管理行业（资管行业）的中心，众多投资者和资管经理汇集于此。2020 年，新加坡的资产管理总额 (AUM) 增长了 17%，达 4.7 万亿新元，高于 2019 年的 4万亿新元¹。这种强劲的增长是由大量流入的传统和另类投资资金所驱动的，包括私募股权 (私募) 和风险投资 (风投)。那一年，私募和风投的资产管理总额分别增长了 54% 和 49%，达到 3,750 亿新元和 160 亿新元。我们认为，新加坡资产管理规模将在未来几年将持续保持增长势头。

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April 22, 2022April 25, 2023 by Duane Morris and Selvam

新加坡家办门槛提高——深度解析金管局新政的底层逻辑

这几天，全网都在疯传下面这张图。不可否认最近移民突然成了热门话题！

4月11日，我们收到了新加坡金管局一封邮件，内容是关于新加坡家办13O/U计划的门槛大幅提高。大概就是图中戴教授所指的消息了。但是戴教授的表述不太严谨，新加坡家办免税计划并不是投资移民，实际上新加坡的投资移民难度远高于此。

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March 14, 2022April 13, 2022 by Duane Morris and Selvam

Singapore Implements Sanctions Against Russia

Ever since Russia’s act of aggression against Ukraine that began on 24 February 2022, the United States and several of its key allies have successively imposed significant sanctions against Russia. These sanctions range from prohibitions on trade and investment in certain regions of Ukraine and the designation of specific nationals that cannot interact with the market and financial system of United States, to imposing new sovereign debt restrictions and even cutting Russia further off from the global economy by removing them from the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication (aka SWIFT) messaging system and disconnecting them from the international financial system, making them no longer able to operate globally. On 8 March 2022, the Biden administration also announced that the United States would be banning the import of Russian oil.

Singapore has joined these efforts, with Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr. Vivian Balakrishnan issuing a Ministerial Statement in Parliament on 28 February 2022, stating that Singapore intends to impose its own sanctions against Russia. On 5 March 2022, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) issued a press statement with two factsheets that set out the details of the economic sanctions and restrictions.

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July 27, 2021August 3, 2021 by Duane Morris and Selvam

Negotiations have concluded for the “Pacific Alliance – Singapore Free Trade Agreement” (PASFTA).

On July 22, 2021, Mr. Gan Kim Yong, Singapore’s Minister of Trade and Industry, together with his counterparts from the members states of the Pacific Alliance – Mexico, Chile, Colombia, and Peru, announced the conclusion of negotiations of the Pacific Alliance – Singapore Free Trade Agreement (PASFTA).

Singapore will become the first Asian-Pacific associate state of the Pacific Alliance (“PA” or “Alliance”) once the pact is signed, which is expected to happen by the end of the year. This is an important milestone in the economic integration between the PA region and Asia-Pacific and is a crucial development for the necessary economic reactivation of the two regions.

The Ministers of Trade agreed that the PASFTA represents an interest in the economic integration of the regions and the improvement of the commercial relationship, attracting investments and expanding access to goods and services. In particular, The PASFTA will enhance trade and deepen cooperation in areas like the digital economy, energy sector, technology, urban solutions, customs, maritime services, and infrastructure.

Latin American and Singapore businesses should take note of this development and where possible, take advantage of the significant trade opportunities and economic growth that this trade agreement will generate.

The Pacific Alliance: main objectives and member Continue reading “Negotiations have concluded for the “Pacific Alliance – Singapore Free Trade Agreement” (PASFTA).”

February 3, 2021February 10, 2021 by Duane Morris and Selvam

新加坡科技准证（Tech Pass）正式启动

早于去年年末，新加坡经济发展局就曾宣布将于今年推出一种新型准证Tech Pass，旨在吸引全球顶尖科技人才前往新加坡，以促进新加坡科技态系统的发展，进一步巩固新加坡作为区域科技枢纽的领先地位。近期，新加坡经济发展局正式启动了Tech Pass，申请人已经可以在其官网上提交申请了。

哪些人可以申请科技准证？

申请人不必必须受雇于新加坡企业，其可以是新加坡企业的雇员，也可以直接在新加坡进行创业、做投资人、担任董事等。申请人只要满足以下三项条件中的两项就可以申请科技准证。当前持有工作准证（Employment Pass）、个人化就业准证（Personalized Employment Pass）等准证的人员，若在符合条件的情况下亦可以申请更换其准证为科技准证。

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January 28, 2021February 11, 2021 by Duane Morris and Selvam

新加坡可变动资本公司（VCC）特点与优势

自2020年1月新加坡金融管理局（简称“金管局”）与会计与企业管制局（简称“ACRA“）联合声明，正式推出可变动资本公司（VCC）框架以来截止10月份，已有近乎于160多家VCC如雨后春笋般涌现。金融管理局公布的《2019新加坡资产管理调查》报告显示，新加坡在2019年资产管理规模年比增长15.7%，达到2.9万亿美元。其中包括传统领域资产（如股票与债券）以及另类资产（私募股权，风险创投等）。新加坡一直以安全稳定的经济、较宽松的监管以及较低的公司税率等来保持其投资吸引力；新 VCC 框架将为投资基金在新加坡的注册和营运提供更大的灵活度。有望鼓励更多基金经理和投资基金产品以新加坡为据点，提升新加坡作为全球投资基金中心的地位。

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