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Singaporean worried about Temasek Holdings raising funds via placement of public bonds
February 19, 2010 by admin
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Written by Our Correspondent
A Singaporean by the name of Lim Kay Soon has written to the Straits Times Forum today expressing his fears about Temasek Holdings’ “upward revision of its private fund-raising scope from US$5 billion (S$7 billion) to US$10 billion”.
“By raising funds via placement of public bonds which Temasek fully and unconditionally guarantees, Temasek is no longer only managing Singapore’s surplus funds. It has, in fact, morphed into a semi-private fund management company,” he wrote.
Set up in 1974 to manage Singapore’s strategic “assets”, an euphemism for state-owned companies, Temasek Holdings has evolved to become a major international fund under the leadership of Ho Ching, the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Under her charge, Temasek bought stakes in many international companies such as Thailand’s Shin Corp, Australia’s ABC Learning and U.S’s Merrill Lynch which were all disastrous flops resulting in loss of billions of dollars.
Mr Lim is concerned about Temasek “indirectly leveraging on its triple A status – which comes from Singapore’s surplus funds – to access global private funds.”
“As with all investments, there are two possible outcomes, winning or losing. Should Temasek lose all of Singapore’s surplus funds, that would be sad, but Singapore would be able to painfully bear with it. On the other hand, should Temasek also lose with its borrowed money, it will not only hurt Singapore’s pockets, but may also shake the world’s confidence in Singapore as a top financial centre,” he added.
Mr Lim’s fears have been misplaced. Temasek Holdings is a “commercial entity” or an “Asian investment firm” which is owned solely by the Ministry of Finance. It has nothing to do with Singaporeans or Singapore. Neither does it have to account to anybody for its investments decision.
He ended his letter by asking if Temasek should be allowed to trade with Singapore’s future:
“Singapore’s financial strength and stability is a key pillar of its economy. Should Temasek be allowed to leverage on and trade with the nation’s future?”
Mr Lim should stop wasting time asking questions which will yield any answers from the authorities. He should just accept Finance Minister Tharman’s exhortations and “trust” the system.
After all, whether Temasek makes money or not is really none of Singaporeans’ business since they will never benefit from it in the first place.
February 19, 2010 by admin
Filed under Headlines
Leave a comment
Written by Our Correspondent
A Singaporean by the name of Lim Kay Soon has written to the Straits Times Forum today expressing his fears about Temasek Holdings’ “upward revision of its private fund-raising scope from US$5 billion (S$7 billion) to US$10 billion”.
“By raising funds via placement of public bonds which Temasek fully and unconditionally guarantees, Temasek is no longer only managing Singapore’s surplus funds. It has, in fact, morphed into a semi-private fund management company,” he wrote.
Set up in 1974 to manage Singapore’s strategic “assets”, an euphemism for state-owned companies, Temasek Holdings has evolved to become a major international fund under the leadership of Ho Ching, the wife of Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
Under her charge, Temasek bought stakes in many international companies such as Thailand’s Shin Corp, Australia’s ABC Learning and U.S’s Merrill Lynch which were all disastrous flops resulting in loss of billions of dollars.
Mr Lim is concerned about Temasek “indirectly leveraging on its triple A status – which comes from Singapore’s surplus funds – to access global private funds.”
“As with all investments, there are two possible outcomes, winning or losing. Should Temasek lose all of Singapore’s surplus funds, that would be sad, but Singapore would be able to painfully bear with it. On the other hand, should Temasek also lose with its borrowed money, it will not only hurt Singapore’s pockets, but may also shake the world’s confidence in Singapore as a top financial centre,” he added.
Mr Lim’s fears have been misplaced. Temasek Holdings is a “commercial entity” or an “Asian investment firm” which is owned solely by the Ministry of Finance. It has nothing to do with Singaporeans or Singapore. Neither does it have to account to anybody for its investments decision.
He ended his letter by asking if Temasek should be allowed to trade with Singapore’s future:
“Singapore’s financial strength and stability is a key pillar of its economy. Should Temasek be allowed to leverage on and trade with the nation’s future?”
Mr Lim should stop wasting time asking questions which will yield any answers from the authorities. He should just accept Finance Minister Tharman’s exhortations and “trust” the system.
After all, whether Temasek makes money or not is really none of Singaporeans’ business since they will never benefit from it in the first place.
( psst!, don't tell him, it is a duplicate, made by MR.MINUTE)
