Hong Kong-Sg

lotus999 SG

hope nobody has posted this ‘enlightening’ piece before

Hong Kong-Singapore
A study of differences
The same mini-bonds problem, but a different way of handling it – and Hong Kong emerges with the accolade. By Lucky Singaporean.
July 9, 2009

Two financial institutions, Sun Hung Kai and KGI Asia, have compensated their customers in full and 16 banks have offered to repay between 60-70% of the principal invested.

The securities watchdog, SFC, is likely to reject the proposal by the 16 banks as they are demanding the banks pay investors in full.

The Hong Kong authorities have found misconduct among the banks in the selling of these products. I believe Hong Kong banks will eventually compensate investors in full.

Singapore
In Singapore, 5,350 out of 10,000 investors filed complaints. Of the 5,350, 66% or roughly 3,500 received offers of compensation on a no-admission-of-liability-basis, 25% or roughly 1,300 received full compensation.
From what I heard, many were offered about 10% in compensation. MAS (Monetary Authority of Singapore) response when these structured products imploded was to send investors back to the banks to file complaints as individuals. This shifted the burden of proof to individuals and allowed banks to choose who they want to compensate.

Hong Kong
The Hong Kong authorities chose to handle the issue differently conducting thorough investigations and helping investors to get a collective settlement.
In the initial part of the saga, Hong Kong authorities met up with representatives of investors to decide on an approach to will result in the best outcome for investors.

Singapore
In Singapore, MAS met up with the banks and came up with the complaints resolution process that sent individuals back to the banks to seek compensation. Banks decided who they want to compensate.

This divide and conquer approach means that those who feel they were not offered fair compensation are unlikely to succeed in a class action lawsuit because those who can offer the strongest evidence of systemic mis-selling will not participate in such a suit because they have already been compensated.

Catastrophic events such as the mini-bond saga that occurs in Singapore and somewhere else at the same time are rare but they allow us to compare the behaviour of our leaders and the authorities with those of other countries.

The type of outcome they aim for says a lot about where their interests lie. – Lucky Singaporean

xtreyier SG

Heck! I too can claim i will pay back ALL investors in FULL. BUT at the end of the day, will I?

Wake up yourself, kiddo. Any body or govt can claim anything, but what will be the poor investors getting AT THE END OF THE DAY? It is the result that one must ensure, not hot air, unless Hongkongers, as usual, can live on hot air, which they practically do everyday anyway. Nothing like a boast to their over inflated egos.

Wake up kiddo to the real world, and not pure f*king hot air politicians everywhere loves to blow in your face, and wait for the real deal to make your judgement on which politician really walk the talk.

angel7030 SG

Aiyo, howcome compare with HKee leh?? if HK is good governed, how come they got more crimes, poor peoples on the street and poor housing than us. Recently, i just went there and chatted with a taxi driver...he keep tio tio their govt, do you know he had to pay about $40,000 sing dollars inorder to get to drive a taxis?? my god, what they work it out, their labour laws is a mess.

Atobe SG

Heck! I too can claim i will pay back ALL investors in FULL. BUT at the end of the day, will I?

If after being promised a full refund, and they do not get it, the Hongkongers will have the opportunity to demonstrate their frustrations and disappointments.

Can Singaporeans do the same ?

The reason for the difference in "official intervention" is that the Singapore Government hands are tied - through the GLCs, who are involved in one form or another with those foreign financial institutions that produced these mini-bonds.

Similarly, the local financial institutions are also the pillars of political support to the Singapore Government, who in turn has interests in the viability of local banks too.

The famous Singapore style "symbiotic relationship" between Government and all other form of Singapore institutions will prevent the Government having a free hand to help Singaporeans without burning the other hand.

lotus999 SG

<wake up kiddo to the real world, and no pure... which politician really walk the talk>

woke up long time ago, your uncle here is a clob victim. your 'walk the talk politician' assured as that clob was a legalised activity and sg govt would take legal action agst the malaysian govt if they were to close it. when the malaysian really closed clob, did your 'walk the talk politician' take any action? no, he just kept a deafening silence! many sg investors have their life savings wiped out overnight!

xtreyier SG

ALL investing does not come without risk. You, a cash rich uncle, saw fit to invest, regardless of whether out of greed or just a few cents more on the ROI than safer blue chip stocks.

You claimed the Singapore administrators will take action. Do you want a war with Malaysia, the only way left when diplomacy, dialogues, negotiations and pleas between inter country fails?

Where some of our young WILL have to die in an outright battle for you few investors who had read and signed on the dotted line, fully aware of such risks for your own personal gain?

Wake up, kiddo..oops..typo..Uncle.

PS: But rest assured, the clob issue may be history, but it will not be forgotten by our generations of the Malaysian perfidies against our nation. There will come a time for retribution if our neighbours up north continues with their bully tactics. The only hope is that a new generation had been born and taken up leaderships roles, and diplomacy not fail.

When the time to come for action, no more will we be beholden to them or need for any niceties, for old ties will have disappeared 6ft underground. Best they be aware of this fact.

lotus999 SG

what a joke. a brain-dead asking others to wake up!

xtreyier SG

what a joke. a brain-dead asking others to wake up!

You see me laffing, spoilt rich brat?

Atobe SG

ALL investing does not come without risk. You, a cash rich uncle, saw fit to invest, regardless of whether out of greed or just a few cents more on the ROI than safer blue chip stocks.

You claimed the Singapore administrators will take action. Do you want a war with Malaysia, the only way left when diplomacy, dialogues, negotiations and pleas between inter country fails?

Where some of our young WILL have to die in an outright battle for you few investors who had read and signed on the dotted line, fully aware of such risks for your own personal gain?

Wake up, kiddo..oops..typo..Uncle.

When the time to come for action, no more will we be beholden to them or need for any niceties, for old ties will have disappeared 6ft underground. Best they be aware of this fact.

Were Singaporeans greedy in jumping onto the greed wagon to get rich, or were hard sell and strong arm sales techniques used to snare Singaporean investors ?

As matters stand, why did the Singapore Government ban 10 financial institutions from selling or trading structured notes ?

Was it not due to the fact that the 10 Singapore financial institutions were found by MAS to have breached their professional duties - when it was found "that the risks ratings on some credit-linked notes linked to the potential bankruptcy of entities including Lehman Brothers were inconsistent with the risks discussed in prospectuses, while sales people were inadequately trained to sell the notes" ?

Even savvy investors need information, and when the financial institutions cannot offer accurate information, or offer misleading information, can any investors - rich or not so rich - all not fall victim to such schemes ?

angel7030 SG

Hi guys and Uncles,

Can i said something?

Well, first of all, Good morning, cool Sunday morning..

In this world, nothing is perfect, in no doubt, all of us make mistakes here and there, just a matter of how serious or if it is a planned mistake. Be it planned or accidental, Our Govt do make mistakes and opposition supporters are ever really to jump on it, but our Govt mistakes are not that big and usually they are able to control it. This alone make the opposition digging for past mistakes or errors, and yet it is still a mistake beyong anyone control.

The differences with out govt and the govts in around our region is that our govt make less accidental mistakes than those countries, and most of these regional countries around us tend to make geniune pre planned mistakes.

lionnoisy SG

Hi guys and Uncles,

Can i said something?

Well, first of all, Good morning, cool Sunday morning..

well said.well said.

2.One of the biggest mistakes that PAP made in the past 50 years was

improving SG too fast.PAP should,in the past few decades,

turn more SG nurses,teachers to work as maids,office workers

in overseas.In this way,SG people then wil konow why do they need a good government and wat is a good gavaman!!

2.refer to the opening post----

Do u know

1.Boss of HKMA,http://www.info.gov.hk/hkma/,said he already knows

that all these mini bonds in advance.wat a smart guy.

angel7030 SG

well said.well said.

2.One of the biggest mistakes that PAP made in the past 50 years was

improving SG too fast.PAP should,in the past few decades,

turn more SG nurses,teachers to work as maids,office workers

in overseas.In this way,SG people then wil konow why do they need a good government and wat is a good gavaman!!

2.refer to the opening post----

Do u know

1.Boss of HKMA,http://www.info.gov.hk/hkma/,said he already knows

that all these mini bonds in advance.wat a smart guy.

Oh really,,hug hug lion...kiss kiss...but i need a better endorsement than from a lion....sad.

Smart??? Madoff more smart lor

Atobe SG

Hi guys and Uncles,

Can i said something?

Well, first of all, Good morning, cool Sunday morning..

"The differences with out govt and the govts in around our region is that our govt make less accidental mistakes than those countries, and most of these regional countries around us tend to make geniune pre planned mistakes."

Are you certain that the government of the regional countries around SG have a tendency to make geniune pre planned mistakes ?

Singapore Government continued its failure to make corrections to the weaknesses in the Singapore economy after the 1987 and the 1997 recessions, even as the various sub-committees in the Economic Review Committee had made studies and dozens of recommendations for structural changes to strengthen Singapore's resillience towards future economic downturn.

Did Singapore performed in any remarkable ways when the economy was hit again with Osama's attack on the NY-WTC in 9/11 - and when the Bird Flu and SARS hit this region in 2003 and 2004 ?

This time around, Singapore was hit worse in this current prolonged downturn that started in 2007 when the retrenchments of 2004 and 2005 was not even over.

How did the Super Talents in the PAP Government managed SG during the last 20 years that Singapore can succumb to the US financial meltdown ?

Are these the same rare super talents that LKY claimed that only the PAP has been able to filter from the SG talent pool ?

How did the efforts of these Super Talents led by LHL result in the current state of affairs in Singapore ?

Only the noisy pussy have such an orgasmic time to praise angel7030, and wilfully overlook the erroneous statement, to blindly praise the PAP government with unreserved enthusiasm.

Fantagf SG

Hong Kong people are better paid than locals

zenden9 SG

Yup! Just like those bloody insurance agent. Telling u are buying a high interest earning bond , gurantee u get back at least 100% of what u invest. In fact, all yr hard earn money is expose to market flunctuation and end of the day, u get back even less than what u put in. Liar!

Fantagf SG

In sg, the thunderstrike party is active to brainwash people to accept low pay jobs which demand employees to take on more than 1 person's job, while they overpay themselves.

angel7030 SG

In sg, the thunderstrike party is active to brainwash people to accept low pay jobs which demand employees to take on more than 1 person's job, while they overpay themselves.

but you can reject the job mah, and also dun vote them lah. why so easy thing also dunno how to tackle??