Back in August 2024, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) set up an Equities Market Review Group to strengthen Singapore’s equities market. This was an acknowledgement that the Singapore stock market is languishing – not just in terms of returns, but also devoid of any inspiration beyond the banks and possibly the REITs.
In February 2025, in his first Budget speech as Prime Minister, PM Lawrence Wong indicated that the government had accepted several recommendations by the Review Group. The Review Group broke this down into measures that 1) increased investor interest, 2) improved Singapore’s attractiveness to listings and 3) established pro-enterprise regulatory stance and measures to strengthen investor confidence.
You can read our article detailing some of these measures to help boost Singapore’s equities market.
Read Also: Revitalising the SGX: 4 Measures To Be Implemented To Help Boost Singapore’s Equities Market
Initial $1.1 Billion Of $5 Billion EQDP Now Set Aside For 3 Fund Managers
One of the major components of the measures was a $5 billion Equity Market Development Programme (EQDP) that MAS will invest with active fund managers with a focus on Singapore stocks.
More than 100 global, regional and local asset managers indicated interest in the EQDP programme. And, in July 2025, MAS announced that an initial $1.1 billion of the $5 billion EQDP would be set aside for three fund managers:
– Avanda Investment Management
– Fullerton Fund Management
– JP Morgan Asset Management.
A range of factors were considered, including the funds’ strategies, the strength of crowding in third-party capital alongside MAS’ funding, and commitments to expand or grow Singapore’s asset management and research capabilities. In particular, the fund strategies should have a clear focus on improving liquidity and broadening participation in Singapore equities, with significant allocation to small- and mid-cap stocks.
The next batch of asset managers shortlisted is expected to be announced by 4Q 2025.
By investing with a broad range of fund managers employing varied strategies, the EQDP can leverage their distinct investment expertise and distribution networks to attract commercial capital and strengthen market vibrancy. This will help to improve price discovery and trading liquidity in Singapore’s equities market.
$50 Million To strengthen Equity Research And Listing Support
Alongside this headline announcement, MAS also announced that $50 million from the Financial Sector Development Fund (FSDF) will be used to enhance the Grant for Equity Market Singapore (GEMS) Scheme – which will also be extended till 31 December 2028.
One aspect of this includes enhancing the Research Development Grant under GEMS. This would:
– Provide additional funding of $1,000 for each research report, and a further $1,000 if the report is an initiation of research coverage or pre-IPO and newly listed companies. This brings the maximum funding from $4,000 currently to $6,000 per research report.
– Offer a new grant for research houses to defray the costs of disseminate the research via digital media.
– Offer new funding to support research on private companies with strong local presence, to foster investor familiarity and build a pipeline of potential listings.
The Research Reports You Read About Companies Are Likely Paid For
If research firms can receive funding for every research report they publish, it’s only logical to expect that they will take full advantage of it.
Alongside the headline-grabbing investments under the EQDP, MAS also announced that they will enhance the funding support under GEMS by $1,000. This means research houses can receive $5,000 for each report they issue (up to the first 40 reports), and up to $6,000 for each report they issue on the next 40 reports, as well as reports on first-time, pre-IPO, and newly-listed companies.
For reference, the graphic below details how the existing scheme works using a 2-tiered approach.
Source: MAS
Having been around for years now, many of the company research reports that you have read recently are likely supported under GEMS. This is not necessarily a bad thing. In fact, there are clear advantages.
The scheme increases analyst coverage on under-researched companies, raising investor awareness and potentially boosting trading activity in the broader market. Paired with the EQDP initiative, which incentivises asset managers to focus more on small and mid-cap stocks, these reports can help level the playing field – reducing the information gap between institutional and retail investors.
There also a more practical industry consideration. Producing a truly independent research report doesn’t directly generate revenue. For many brokerages, research is a cost centre. Without subsidies like GEMS, they may reduce research headcount, deprioritise broad-based coverage or lower the quality of coverage.
For smaller research firms, GEMS could be the only thing keeping them afloat. However, this raises a different consideration: are some firms unsustainable as a whole, and are they only existing in the ecosystem to chase grant money?
MAS-Sponsored Content Is Still Sponsored Content
Nevertheless, with MAS paying for these research reports, companies may not need to pay to have reports written about them. This saves them money and adds a layer of perceived neutrality – a research funded by MAS appears more impartial than one funded by the company itself.
Still, retail investors need to digest such reports with a dose of skepticism. In the online research space, this is typically referred to as DYODD (Do Your Own Due Diligence). Even before the GEMS scheme, brokerages have accepted payments from companies to publish reports. The only difference now is that the funding comes from MAS.
While such reports are meant to be more independent, they’re still paid-for content. After all, the core objective of GEMS is to “boost investor awareness and trading interest in under-researched segments”. Negative reports do not really help meet these goals.
As a final consideration, GEMS scheme is public money at work. Promoting the Singapore stock market as a whole is a worthwhile goal. But, it may disproportionally benefit some firms that only survive because of the funding and not growing a value-adding business, and it may also help some listed companies more than others in the ecosystem.
For individual investors, though, you always have to DYODD. It’s your money at the end of the day, and you have to evaluate the research reports not just for what they say, but also whether it makes sense for you.
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