Govt to take 'hands off' approach on state funds: Tharmanlet's hope the new finance minister knows his responsibilities
'It is important for the government to retain its stance of not assessing Temasek and GIC on individual deals.' -- ST PHOTO: MUGILAN RAJASEGERAN
THE Government will take a 'hands off' approach on investments made by its sovereign wealth funds in banks including Citigroup Inc. amid the subprime meltdown, Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam said in Parliament on Monday.
The recent multi-billion-dollar investments in ailing global financial institutions were made purely from a commercial standpoint, he told the House.
The government plays no role in how the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation (GIC) and investment firm Temasek Holdings decide their investment policies, said Mr Tharman.
'They make these decisions for commercial reasons based on their own calculations free of any influence from the government,' he told Parliament.
'It is not the government's role to comment on or second guess whether it was timely for GIC and Temasek to make these investments,' he said in response to an MP's question.
He said the government is 'scrupulous in avoiding comment' or influence not only publicly but internally on the individual decisions of Temasek and GIC.
'It does not judge the performance of GIC and Temasek by their individual deals,' Mr Tharman said.
GIC and Temasek are both sovereign wealth funds - a form of government-created investment vehicle which has emerged as a potent force on global financial markets.
With their newfound market muscle, such funds have led to concerns over a lack of transparency and national security in recipient countries.
The two funds made global headlines recently with their investments in global financial houses battered by a US housing slump.
GIC, the custodian of Singapore's massive foreign reserves of more than US$100 billion (S$143 billion), announced last week it would invest US$6.88 billion in US banking giant Citigroup.
That followed its December investment of almost US$10 billion into Swiss bank UBS, while Temasek Holdings committed to injecting US$4.4 billion into US brokerage firm Merrill Lynch.
'These are large investments; there will be downside risks and it's up to GIC and Temasek to assess these risks and decide if they are acceptable,' said Mr Tharman.
'It is important for the government to retain its stance of not assessing Temasek and GIC on individual deals.'
GIC, the government's fund manager, said in July 2006 it earned an average 9.5 per cent annually since its inception in 1981.
Temasek, the state-owned investment company, had a return on investment of more than 18 per cent by market value since its inception in 1974, the company said in its latest annual report.
Financial services rose to 38 per cent of Temasek's assets in the financial year ended March 2007 from 35 per cent a year earlier, the company said in the report released in August.
The company is the single-largest investor in banks such as Standard Chartered Plc and DBS Group Holdings Ltd. -- AFP.
The 40 plus years of this kind of government it only points to one fact - power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely.Originally posted by phil30k:Dear Robert,
I find myself sometimes wishing Singapore would not get so involved overseas. Just sufficient to secure ourselves and not to the point where domestic issues go unresolved.
Sometimes I get the mental picture of a child getting a toy. At first he takes care of it and plays properly. Then he plays with it in imaginative ways. Then throws it around to test how strong it is. Then wanting to open it up to see what's inside. Then finally getting bored with the battered object and wants a replacement.
Cannot blame the finance minister, he is too busy coming up new idea to tax the people. After all, he is only paid a few millions.Originally posted by Lin Yu:let's hope the new finance minister knows his responsibilities![]()
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Originally posted by (human):there is actually a very sinister scheme behind all these purchase.... if you believe wat the hongkeys are spinning....
[b]$33b GIC, Temasek ventures purely commercial: Tharman
You may fool all the people some of the time, you can even fool some of the people all of the time, but you cannot fool all of the people all the time. -Abraham Lincoln
Purely commercial? Hands off? Dear citizens the director of Temasick is the wife of our dear prime minister. Any one still believe it's purely commercial and hands off? Is Tharman thinking Singaporeans were just borned yesterday?
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i dont know if the global financial map will change that much in 10 to 20 years...Originally posted by weiqimun:the financial muscle of the future will come from china. i think it will overtake the current powerhouse in 10-20 years time. china/ india will yield a lot more power and influence.
just like the brits who rules the world not too long ago, i suspect the american's time is up. it will be a matter of time when they will no longer have the resources nor influence to shape the world.
tt's why HK is not betting on US nor europe.
Originally posted by anonymouscoward:What he said
[b]If I give my financial consultant $50,000 USD to do investments for me, I want to know what she does with it; what she bought, why she bought it, how much did she bough it for, what she sold, why did she sell it, how much did she sell it for and how much money I am making.
[b]
singapore aint the only country that invested in those banks... many countries like china, arab nations and scandinavian countries also invested in those banks...Originally posted by SnowFlag:The same ppl in the Goverment and Temasek....yet he say the govt take "hands off" approach
What he may mean is that the govt dun want to give explanation.....especially when it is a stupid decision![]()
Hands off approach? I think they know their hands are stained with their foolish decisions of loosing peoples reserve in the investment by GIC and now trying to go for wash hands approach with 154th media to help them fool and spread their lies thinking all Singaporeans are all blinded like those 66%. Tharman if your hands are really dirty just admit it, no need to use propaganda machines to help you to help your masters to sweep the dirt under the carpet. It really seems pathetic.Originally posted by SnowFlag:The same ppl in the Goverment and Temasek....yet he say the govt take "hands off" approach
What he may mean is that the govt dun want to give explanation.....especially when it is a stupid decision![]()
He busy making roti prata, where got time.Originally posted by charlize:So who is checking up on our state reserves?
The president?