NCMP Leong Mun Wai voiced his shock and disappointment after learning that NTUC Enterprise’s planned capital extraction from NTUC Income, following its proposed sale to German insurer Allianz, was not disclosed to the public.
Mr Leong raised these concerns in Parliament after Culture, Community, and Youth Minister Edwin Tong announced the government’s decision to block the deal, which had been announced on 17 July 2023.
The deal would have allowed Allianz to acquire a majority stake in NTUC Income.
However, Mr Tong stated that the government determined it would not be in the public interest for the transaction to proceed due to concerns over NTUC Income’s ability to maintain its social mission after the acquisition.
A key issue raised by the Ministry of Culture, Community, and Youth (MCCY) was the proposed capital reduction, which was not made clear during earlier discussions.
The lack of transparency regarding these details particularly troubled NCMP Leong Mun Wai.
During the parliamentary session, Leong expressed shock over the disclosure of NTUC Enterprise’s intention for capital extraction, a critical component of the deal.
He argued that such information should have been made publicly available from the outset of the proposed transaction.
“This information should be available to all Singaporeans,” Leong said, criticising the failure to disclose key financial conditions. “
For the last few months, we were under the impression that the information provided was complete. Now, we learn about capital extraction, which is a very important condition of any financial deal.”
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