SG wealthtech investment grows 7x, outpaces region: report

Singapore’s wealthtech sector saw a seven-fold increase in investments between 2017 to 2021, outpacing the 2x growth of the industry in Asia as a whole, according to a report by Endowus and KPMG.

Singapore Financial District / Photo credit: Shutterstock

Singapore’s wealthtech investments sat at US$23 million in 2017 and then climbed to over US$161 million in 2021. The report attributed the growth to the rise of prominent wealthtech players in the country that provide online investing tools and digital advisory.

The robust ecosystem Singapore has for innovation and fintech development helped boost the inflow of wealth from other hubs in Asia, according to the report.

The report also identified Singapore as a key wealth management hub due to its political stability, tax incentives, and supportive regulatory environment. The city-state’s well-established IT infrastructure and tech-savvy population also led to the easy adoption of digital financial services, allowing more access to wealth management products, the report noted.

It also found that there was demand for wealth managers to provide access to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) products, reporting tools, and capabilities as a younger generation of investors seeks investment opportunities that are sustainable and purposeful. Digital assets such as cryptocurrencies and NFTs continue to see strong consumer interest despite the so-called crypto winter.

See also: Sizing up GXS and Trust, Singapore’s newly launched digital banks