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Survey Reveals Split In How Hong Kong, Singapore HNWs Use Investment Platforms
Editorial Staff
29 May 2024
High net worth investors in Hong Kong are far more likely to use digital platforms to make private market investments than their Singapore peers, according to a survey of 492 such persons by , an organisation founded in 2017 and regulated in Hong Kong and Singapore. Better investment returns is the top priority for HNW investors in Singapore (48 per cent), followed by concerns such as keeping up with inflation, excessive risk taking, diversification and high fees. Digital wealth management platform, Endowus has raised $95 million in funding from investors including UBS Next, Citi Ventures, MUFG Innovation Partners, EDBI, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Prosus Ventures, Samsung Ventures, SBVA, Singtel Innov8, and Z Venture Capital. Other investors include large Asian family offices, and the founders and staff of Endowus.
The report comes at a time when the way that HNW people try to access private markets (private equity, credit, venture capital, forms of real estate) is being questioned, given the large inflows into the area as investors seek the illiquidity premiums on offer.
Digital investment platforms are the preferred mode of access for private market and hedge fund investing in Singapore (37 per cent) and Hong Kong (57 per cent). The study found that Singapore HNW individuals are slightly more likely to tap into these markets (21 per cent) via private bank relationship managers than is the case for those in Hong Kong (18 per cent).
The study was conducted by YouGov Singapore from February to March 2024.
This differs slightly from Hong Kong, where respondents ranked greater portfolio diversification and succession planning as their top concerns.
More than half of respondents in both markets also indicated that they are “optimistic” or “very optimistic” about the 2024 economic outlook, with Singapore investors demonstrating a slightly higher risk appetite to grow their capital (71 per cent) than their Hong Kong counterparts (66 per cent).
Digital shift
The report said that even though 45 per cent of Singapore respondents picked "private banking services through relationship managers" as their current avenue of investing in private assets, only 21 per cent considered it their preferred mode of access.
“The waning dependence on relationship managers may suggest increased sophistication in the client base, sensitivity to fees, a desire for lower minimum ticket sizes, information transparency, and being served through conflict-free business models,” the report said.
“This trend is mirrored by an observed shift towards self-directedness, or self-managed portfolios in Singapore. A majority (71 per cent) of Singapore respondents indicate that they manage their investment portfolios (across public and private markets) entirely or mostly on their own, contrasting with the majority (60 per cent) in Hong Kong who manage their investments mostly with the help of a relationship manager or financial advisor.