Singapore Government Securities (SGS) are debt instruments of the Government of Singapore and can be in the form of treasury bills or bonds. Singapore Government bonds were first issued in the early 1960s to cater to the needs of banks and government agencies for risk-free and liquid assets. In 1998, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) embarked on a strategy to turn Singapore into an international debt hub and key to this is the development of an efficient and liquid SGS market. In May 2000, MAS undertook to ensure a sizeable free float of bonds above banks' minimum liquid asset holdings to meet the needs of both existing and new players, and to promote an active secondary market. For more background information on SGS, you may go to www.sgs.gov.sg

iFAST Financial is participating in the efforts to develop the SGS market by making SGS bonds available to retail investors via its online channel, Fundsupermart.com. Fundsupermart.com, which also retails unit trusts, plays the role of a secondary dealer in the SGS bond market. As a secondary dealer, Fundsupermart.com provides a transactional platform for SGS bonds that were previously issued in the primary market. It administers the entire buy/sell process for SGS bonds, including the coupon payments, and it interfaces with MAS-appointed primary dealers to obtain price quotes for all SGS bonds. (SGS primary dealers are committed to making continuous 2-way prices for SGS under all market conditions.)

Fundsupermart.com is the first online entity to be given the opportunity to make SGS bonds available to the public. It intends to harness the power of the Internet to raise awareness for SGS bonds and contribute to the efforts to develop Singapore into an international debt hub.