Monetary Authority of Singapore will approve the guidelines for the issuance of covered bonds?

Bankers in Asia are hopeful that the Monetary Authority of Singapore will approve the guidelines for the issuance of covered bonds in the country as early as this week. The gossip on the sidelines of a covered bond conference held by Deutsche Bank at Marina Bay Sands last week was that the regulator was at the end of its review process of the draft that had been submitted early this year for market comments.

According to the draft submitted by MAS to the market in March this year, local banks will be allowed to issue as much as 2% of their assets as covered bonds. That does not represent a large amount, and considering the current S$221.2bn (US$180.57bn) in assets of Singapore lenders – according to MAS data – the new legislation would only allow them to issue some S$4.4bn in covered bonds.

Excerpts from:

IFR Asia DCM Briefing - November 19 2012