Common Alder Global Fund Administration Enquire
← All insights All blips

Singapore to Introduce 0% Fund Manager-focussed Tax Regime Starting 2027

Blip
Fund Management Hong Kong MAS Onshore Singapore Tax

As reported in Bloomberg[1] and the Financial Times[2], Singapore intends[3] to introduce a similar regime to Hong Kong's proposal[4] to extend a preferential (zero per cent) tax regime to all managers of alternative investment funds (notably hedge funds) that fit the qualifying criteria. This is in addition to two other policy measures[5] designed to bolster the local fund management industry[6].

Whilst subject to political debate[7], historically most onshore jurisdictions differentiated (from a personal tax perspective) between a performance fee paid to hedge fund managers (income tax) versus “carried interest”[8] (capital gains tax or/and at a lower rate) paid by partners of private equity and venture capital funds. This differentiated treatment is principally the result of focussed advocacy by the private equity industry that Partners of PE/VC firms have “capital at risk”.

Given intensifying competition amongst international financial centres vying to increase market share as a fund management hub[9], the tax treatment of individual portfolio managers’ variable compensation becomes a driving factor[10] as to where hedge funds locate central operations[11], alongside relocation of key “front office” personnel[12]. This is the latest example of policy-making competition between jurisdictions looking to siphon market share away[13] from the traditional fund management hubs of the City of London, Wall Street and Connecticut.

Notes

  1. David Ramli, ‘Singapore Pledges Tax Breaks for Fund Managers After HK Move’ (Bloomberg, 19 Aug 2026). https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-19/singapore-pledges-tax-breaks-for-fund-managers-after-hk-move. ↑
  2. Owen Walker, ‘Singapore unveils tax cuts for asset managers amid global talent tussle’ (Financial Times, 19 Aug 2026). https://www.ft.com/content/6b62e9fb-d2e4-4739-9b71-8771d7e36a2d. ↑
  3. ‘MAS Introduces Measures to Strengthen Singapore’s Competitiveness as a Leading Asset Management Hub’ (MAS, 19 Aug 2026). https://www.mas.gov.sg/news/media-releases/2026/mas-introduces-measures-to-strengthen-singapores-competitiveness-as-a-leading-asset-management-hub · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  4. Echo Wong, Eunice Xu, Bei Hu & Denise Wee, ‘Hedge Fund Tax Break Grips Hong Kong as Banks Fear Exodus’ (Bloomberg, 18 Aug 2026). https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-08-17/hedge-fund-tax-break-grips-hong-kong-as-banks-fear-exodus · Archive 1. ↑
  5. Erin Liam, ‘Singapore rolls out new foreign work pass track, tax exemptions for asset management industry’ (Channel News Asia, 19 Aug 2026). https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/asset-management-industry-foreign-work-pass-track-tax-exemption-mas-6328001 · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  6. Benjamin Lim, ‘New foreign work pass track, tax exemption perks to strengthen asset management in Singapore’ (The Straits Times, 19 Aug 2026). https://www.straitstimes.com/business/new-foreign-work-pass-track-tax-exemption-perks-to-strengthen-asset-management-in-singapore · Archive 1. ↑
  7. Daniel Lewin & Charlotte Sallabank, ‘Legislating for a New UK Carried Interest Tax Regime’ (Katten Muchin Rosenman, 26 Aug 2025). https://katten.com/legislating-for-a-new-uk-carried-interest-tax-regime · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  8. Domenico Imparato, ‘Private Equity’s Byzantine Tax Stand—An Untold and New Story of Carried Interest’ (British Tax Review, 8 Jul 2025). https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=5343721 · Archive 2. ↑
  9. Chloe Cornish, ‘Can Dubai keep its crown as the Middle East’s finance capital?’ (Financial Times, 13 Aug 2025). https://www.ft.com/content/2383accb-1193-4b98-aaa1-52888ebf5418 · Archive 1. ↑
  10. Nishant Kumar, Bei Hu & Hema Parmar, ‘Hedge Fund Traders Are Pushing Their Firms Into Dubai and Abu Dhabi’ (Bloomberg, 18 Jun 2025). https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-18/uae-hedge-fund-traders-are-pushing-firms-into-dubai-abu-dhabi · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  11. ‘JJJ Capital expands to Dubai amid UAE hedge fund boom’ (Hedgeweek, 19 Dec 2024). https://www.hedgeweek.com/jjj-capital-expands-to-dubai-amid-uae-hedge-fund-boom/ · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  12. Bilal Jafar, ‘Millennium’s Shivang Sood to join North Rock Capital in Dubai: Sood will take on portfolio management role in September’ (Financial News, 18 Jul 2025). https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/millenniums-shivang-sood-to-join-north-rock-capital-in-dubai-6e727356 · Archive 1 · Archive 2. ↑
  13. Bilal Jafar, ‘Waitrose, members’ clubs… Yes, Dubai is the new London for hedge funds: How is the city helping the influx of expat Brit hedge fund managers acclimatise to their new way of life?’ (Financial News, 29 Sep 2025). https://www.fnlondon.com/articles/waitrose-members-clubs-yes-dubai-is-the-new-london-for-hedge-funds-c26a96c7 · Archive 1. ↑