fundsupermart offering lets investors trade wholesale bonds in smaller lots

IN A move that could lower risks, fundsupermart is launching a new bond trading platform where investors can trade smaller amounts of bonds that are typically sold only to institutional investors

When most people imagine Singapore they think of efficiency, clean streets, low crime and a lack of corruption. The spectre of debt defaults has not encroached on that image until now, or until a year ago to be precise, when a Singapore dollar bond issued by Indonesian telecoms merchandiser Trikomsel missed a coupon payment.

PRIVATE banks will have to disclose all fees, charges and rebates in bond sales in a bid to be more transparent following outcries from investors who have lost money in recent defaults.