The measures take effect from 2027, with details due at the Budget, typically delivered in February.

Chee Hong Tat, Minister for National Development and deputy chairman of MAS, said it was important for the government to share its plans with the industry as firms consider where to locate and expand their businesses, Bloomberg reported.

MAS and the Ministry of Finance will exempt profit-related returns arising from the provision of fund management services to qualifying funds. The exemption covers the share of a fund's profits contractually received by corporate entities, partnerships or individuals in exchange for those services, and excludes salaries, bonuses and other staff pay.

Funds must be Singapore-based and already meet economic substance requirements including minimum headcount. The exemption applies from the year of assessment 2027, capturing earnings across the full 2026 calendar year.

Bloomberg reported that the exemption appears to match Hong Kong's plan to slash taxes on carried interest, and comes as the Chinese territory regains ground, with tax cuts and a reviving listings market drawing expatriates back.

Hong Kong gazetted legislation on June 12 granting an effective zero rate on carried interest and performance fees at both corporate and individual level, backdated to April 2025, and the South China Morning Post reported the bill cleared its first reading on June 24.

The Alternative Investment Management Association warned MAS in July that the proposals risked widening the effective tax gap between the two centers, according to Bloomberg.

Asked at a doorstop interview whether the package was a response to Hong Kong, Chee said "we don't see the competition with Hong Kong as zero sum," adding that the region was large enough for both cities to grow as financial centers.

Chee Hong Tat, Singapore's Minister for National Development and Deputy Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), speaks to the press in a doorstop interview at the MAS building in Singapore, March 27, 2026. Photo by Reuters

He acknowledged that shifts in the global landscape had prompted Singapore to review its own policies, and said competitiveness rested on more than tax alone, including trust and stability, the regulatory framework and access to talent, AsiaOne reported.

MAS and the Ministry of Manpower will add an investment management track to the Overseas Networks and Expertise Pass, a five-year visa attached to the individual rather than an employer that lets holders work for multiple companies or start businesses without reapplying.

MOM currently sets a fixed monthly salary threshold of S$30,000 ($23,500), with a separate pathway for applicants with outstanding achievements in sports, arts and culture, or academia and research.

Salary assessment under the new track could be refined to recognize returns linked to investment performance and fund outcomes, which MAS said form a significant and recurring component of pay for specialized fund management work alongside fixed monthly salary.

Chee called the change an enhancement that makes the existing framework more flexible, telling reporters that bringing in a small number of top-tier people from overseas creates a magnified effect on economic growth and job creation.

MAS will also invest alongside hedge fund managers committed to establishing or expanding in Singapore under a new investment programme, which the regulator said is intended to build out the surrounding ecosystem, including ancillary service providers and prime brokerages.

Asset management accounts for around 15% of Singapore's financial sector output and 13% of its employment, MAS said. The industry employs close to 25,000 people in roles spanning portfolio management, investment research, client servicing and risk management, around 80% of them locals.

The industry has grown 7.5% a year on average over the past five years, and assets under management rose 10.1% to S$6.7 trillion ($5.2 trillion) at the end of 2025 on strong market performance.

Net inflows reached S$376 billion, up 29%, according to the annual asset management survey MAS released July 28.