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Collin Furtado · · 5 min readInfo-Tech flagged for ‘inappropriate marketing’; firm says it’s compliant
SkillsFuture Singapore (SSG), the government agency in charge of upskilling Singaporeans, says it received “feedback” in 2024 about “inappropriate marketing practices” at Info-Tech Systems, a HR tech firm worth over US$164 million.
The claim centered on how Info-Tech promoted its courses to potential clients, an SSG spokesperson tells Tech in Asia. The agency has contacted the Singapore-listed company to “address this concern and obtained commitment from them to cease any such practices.”
Image credit: Arsal Ysfin
The spokesperson adds that SSG has not received additional public feedback on the matter but did not provide more details.
Tech in Asia reached out to Info-Tech and various government agencies for comment after being tipped off about the matter. The company says it “complies fully with all Singapore government grant frameworks” including SSG and the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG), and it goes through “regular audits required by the relevant authorities.”
The Singapore government has long been known for supporting startups and SMEs by providing grants. It maintains a balance in setting rules: Laxity risks abuse, while excessive restriction and procedures could deter the usage of grants.
Sources tell Tech in Asia that Info-Tech has been tapping into the PSG and the SkillsFuture Enterprise Credit (SFEC) to grow its topline. The company uses these grants to offer discounts on their products to customers.
The PSG allows SMEs to file a claim for up to 50% of the costs or up to S$30,000 (US$23,000) for buying IT solutions and equipment to digitalize their businesses. The SFEC gives eligible companies a one-off S$10,000 (US$7,700) in credits to offset the costs of upskilling employees.
These grant programs are a big part of Info-Tech’s operations and customer acquisition as its website prominently displays both the PSG and SkillFuture grants.
An Info-Tech package seen by Tech in Asia offered a HR management solution (HRMS) suite at a 50% discount for up to 25 employees.
Revenue from grants
In its IPO prospectus, Info-Tech said about 66% of its new SME customers for HRMS and accounting software in Singapore were recipients of the PSG grant in 2024. It further mentions that since the PSG grant isn’t available after the first year of the subscription, many may not choose to renew.
“If we cannot replace our SME customers that do not renew their subscriptions for our service with new customers quickly enough, our revenue could decline, which will adversely impact our business and results of operations,” Info-Tech said in its prospectus.
Info-Tech System went public on the SGX mainboard on July 4, 2025. / Photo credit: Info-Tech Systems
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The claim opens the broader issue of how heavily the Singapore-based HR tech firm relies on government grants to grow its revenue.
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