Singapore and China Announce New Capital Market Initiatives and Enhanced Financial Cooperation

Introduction

Financial cooperation between Singapore and the People’s Republic of China (“China“) has deepened markedly over the past decade, anchored by high-level frameworks such as the Joint Council for Bilateral Cooperation (“JCBC“). The two sides have progressively broadened connectivity across payments, market infrastructure, and regulatory dialogue.

In the area of capital markets, Singapore and China have cooperated on a slew of bilateral initiatives, creating new channels for two-way capital flows and product development. These measures serve to integrate market infrastructure and position both economies as financial centres of capital formation in Asia.

To further enhance financial cooperation between Singapore and China, on 15 December 2025, at the 21^st JCBC meeting, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (“MAS“) announced new bilateral financial and capital markets initiatives, as well as progress on existing initiatives. These include:

1. supporting the secondary listing of Chinese corporates in Singapore;
2. commencement of the over-the-counter (“OTC“) bond market arrangement;
3. appointment of DBS Bank as a Renminbi (“RMB“) clearing bank;
4. deeper collaboration in indices and Exchange Traded Funds (“ETF“) Product Links; and
5. advancement of cross-border green finance cooperation.

This Update provides an overview of the initiatives announced by MAS and the opportunities that they provide.

New Initiatives

Secondary Listings of Chinese Corporates 

In recent years, the Singapore Exchange (“SGX“) has enacted various amendments to its listing framework, offering various avenues for foreign corporates – including Chinese companies, businesses and assets – to list on the SGX. 

MAS and the China Securities Regulatory Commission (“CSRC“) have now expressed further support for the secondary listing of Chinese companies on the SGX. To facilitate this, MAS and SGX will extend the secondary listing framework, including the streamlined prospectus requirements, for Chinese A-share companies (those listed on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchanges).

This initiative aims to enable access to international capital and provide additional funding channels for regional business expansion.

OTC Bond Market Arrangement

Singapore and China will commence an OTC bond market arrangement through Bank of China and DBS Bank. Pursuant to the arrangement, designated banks in Singapore will be able to provide institutional investors with access to selected fixed income products on the China Interbank Bond Market.

The arrangement seeks to strengthen Singapore’s position as a gateway for investors seeking to invest in Asia.

Appointment as RMB Clearing Bank

DBS has been appointed as Singapore’s second RMB clearing bank, following the appointment of the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China Singapore branch in 2013. This aims to support further growth of the offshore RMB market in Singapore, as well as facilitate the use of RMB for trade and investment.

Progress on Existing Initiatives

Indices and ETF Product Links

The cooperation between SGX Indices and China Securities Index Co., Ltd. (“CSI“) began with the introduction of the CSI SGX Emerging Asia Technology Index in 2024, which served to capture the region’s fast-growing tech sector.

SGX and CSI have since launched the CSI SGX Asia 100 Indices in November 2025, marking the second set of co-branded indices. The new indices track the performance of 100 of the largest companies across Asian markets, bringing developed, emerging and onshore China markets into one transparent, rules-based benchmark suite.

MAS and CSRC will also advance cooperation to facilitate more ETF product launches under the China-Singapore ETF Product Links and expand the equity ETF product suite. The ETF Product Links between SGX and the Shenzhen and Shanghai Stock Exchanges were launched in 2022 and 2023 respectively to promote stock market connectivity between Singapore and China, and have served to improve investor access to ETF products in the respective markets.

Cross-Border Green Finance Cooperation

MAS announced the advancement of cross-border green finance cooperation through the Singapore-China Green Finance Taskforce. Pursuant to these efforts, MAS and the People’s Bank of China will collaborate on updating the Multi-Jurisdiction Common Ground Taxonomy (“MCGT“).

This aims to promote interoperability between the two parties’ respective green taxonomies, and encourage the MCGT’s adoption in cross-border green transactions.

Concluding Words

The latest set of initiatives deepens two-way market connectivity between Singapore and China, making it easier for companies to raise capital and for investors to access diversified cross‑border products.

Issuers – particularly Chinese corporates – may wish to take advantage of the additional listing pathways in Singapore and access to deeper international capital. Investors may also wish to utilise the improved access to onshore Chinese bonds and the more comprehensive Asia‑wide indices and ETF exposures.

For further queries, please feel free to contact our Team as set out on this page.

For more information, please see the following:

• MAS Press Release on “Singapore and China Deepen Financial Cooperation through New RMB and Capital Market Initiatives” (available on the MAS website at https://www.mas.gov.sg/)