TAXES TO COLLECT AND TAXES TO LET GO

How I hate this building. In years long past my nonchalance towards a citizen's responsibility to speedy settlement of personal taxes, coupled with my proclivity to procrastination, often ended up with me having to go down to the IRAS office to sort things out. The IRAS has a very simple and absolutely effective way of handling delinquent block heads like me. The fines just doubled up, tripled, quadrupled till at some point the irresistible force can move an immoveable object.

This year the IRAS is going to collect more taxes from me. But this time it will not require me to go down to their office. I am referring of course to the GST which has gone up from 7% to 8%. It will increase again to 9% next year. The Ministry of Finance has said the additional 2% will raise about S$3.5b annually. This additional revenue is required to meet health care cost for a graying population, so they said.  What the government is not saying is the Pioneer and Mederka generations have been so fawning building up reserves to take care of future generations, the new generation is now unable to take care of the graying citizens whose future has arrived. Is the Pioneer, Merdeka, Millennial generation, or Gen X, to blame or is it some screwed up policy somewhere?

What else has the government not told us? The big fishes that got away. The tax leakages that they turn a blind eye to. Oh ya, they have been good at throwing the kitchen sink at me for years over a thousand bucks in late payment here and there.  But the millions, well there is always another Daedalus explanation from officialdom.

In 2021, Singapore was ranked 9th in the global Corporate Tax Haven Index, and 5th in the Financial Secrecy Index. Pretty impressive ranking, right? Except for these 2 indexes, the higher ranking means the badder the country is.  Singapore looks the other way for big fishes to avoid taxes. 

These 2 indexes show how good Singapore was in 2021 at allowing cross-border corporate tax abuse by multinational corporations and private tax evasion by private individuals. According to the Tax Justice Network. the tax lost by Singapore due to global tax abuse was S$5.7b (US$4.277 x 1.3). Let that sink in. For some sense of perspective, that represents about 10% of total state revenue for 2021. And the social cost, you need to look at it this way. The lost tax amounts to 70% of the health budget, making the increase in GST unnecessary.

At a time of crippling inflation, the government raises GST to collect S$3.5b from everybody, including those trying hard to make ends meet, but lets slip about S$5.7b (2021) that fat cats with creative accountants and glib lawyers can buy.  

The S$5.7b is split down the middle between abuses committed by multi-national corporations and private individuals.

Illicit financial flows are transfers of money from one country to another that are forbidden by law, rules or custom. There are various channels for such illicit transfers. For Singapore, this is mainly via outward trade in which we have a bad score of 66/100 (100 is the baddest). These outward trades are captured with trading partners. In the case of Singapore, the 3 major partner countries are Liberia, Panama and Hongkong. Well, what do you know. The three biggest tax havens in the world!

There is a proliferation of trust companies in Singapore, mostly are foreign entities. They all have offices that operate in all the popular tax havens worldwide. The better to facilitate illicit financial flows. When the Panama Papers came out in 2016 and 2 Singapore domiciled trusts, Asiaciti Trust and Trident Trust, were mentioned, MAS said the 2 were already in their sights before the leak came out.

Ya, right.

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VACCINATED AND WORRIED? CHECK FOR BLOOD CLOTS AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR TELOMERES

Caveat: This is not medical advice, nor any pretence of medical expertise of any sort. It is simply a sharing of information that may be helpful to anyone on a personal journey of discovery searching for answers to what a person can do with suspected injury from Covid vaccines.

Blood clots:

Understanding basic terms - Thrombocytopenia is a state when there is low blood platelet count; CVST (cerebral venous sinus thrombosis) refers to blood clots in the brain’s veins (not the arteries - which leads to strokes); TTS (thrombosis-thrombocytopenia syndrome) is having both thrombocytopenia + CVST at the same time. When afflicted with TTS after a jab it is called VITT (vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia).

CDC and FDA said risk of CVST from Covid19 infection is 8-10 times higher than having VITT from a jab. So go ahead and take the jabs. (If you still believe them).

VITT occurs only with Astrazeneca and Johnson & Johnson Covid-19 vaccines. Happens between 4 to 28 days after the jab. VITT leads to limb amputation in several known cases shared on internet. which means the clot is not just cerebral, but anywhere.

Symptoms can include severe headache; blurry vision; fainting or loss of consciousness; weakness; sensory changes; confusion or trouble speaking; seizures; abdominal pain; leg pain; difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Damn serious. Go hospital immediately. 

The process of embalming bodies requires blood to be sucked out. Embalmers in many countries have come out to warn they are seeing a high incidence of bodies with massive blood clots. What's frightening is not just the numbers, but the massive clots they are seeing. These have since been examined as not usual blood clots but some sort of protein formations and they are rubbery and huge. And no one seems to know how these are formed. It seems that it's not just Astra and J&J but Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are also causing these frightening clots.

Viewer discretion suggested

If you want to go check if you have clots, they say go take a fibrinogen and D-dimer test. However, I wonder whether these unusual type clots will show up in these tests since these are not real blood cells. There is Magnetic Resonance Imaging with a venogram (MRI/MRV) or computed tomography with venogram (CT/CTV). 

If you want to take some sort of blood thinner just for precaution, doctors warn no heparin coagulants or  products in any dose should be taken for suspected CVST, TTS or VITT. (By implication, avoid Aspirin?). Even then, since these clots are not blood, I dunno if blood thinners are of any use.

Telomeres:

In my previous blog How's Your Telomeres I showed science indicates spike proteins of both the SARS-Cov2 virus and the novel vaccines cause inflammation and oxidative stress and these two phenomenons result in DNA damage because the telomere is rich in the base guanine which the oxidation process attacks. The outcome is shortened telomeres which accelerate cell ageing. People who have had a bad case of Covid, or adverse events of vaccines, all suffered debilitating effects of various diseases of old age. Those lucky to have survived such episodes, and those who have had very mild, or no experiences, are likely to have organs that are biologically older. To restore organ vitality and youthfulness rests with elongating the telomeres. It's the same fountain of youth that was my quest 25 years ago. Is there anything one can do or take to improve telomere restoration?  The vaccinated should try to manage the two phenomenons of inflammation and oxidative stress which may require lifestyle changes.

Cycloastragenol supplement

There is a promising molecule called cycloastragenol which is derived from the membrane of the astragalus herb.

Cycloastragenol has shown tremendous promise in several clinical trials. It is anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative. It activates the telomerase enzymes which helps to elongate telomeres and restore cell sub-division capabilities. See a 2011 study by Calvin Haley et el A Natural Product Telomerase Activator As Part of a Health Maintenance Program which used the commercial product TA-65 from TA Science Lab.

As a preventive, its anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative properties are excellent against the inflammatory and oxidative stress brought about by the spike proteins of the coronavirus and the mRNA and adenovirus vaccines.

But there is a problem. Malignant cells occur in our bodies naturally. Shortened telomeres cause the cell into a state of apoptosis, ie death of a cell. So our body gets rid of cancerous cells naturally. Telomerase restores telomeres, so it may also contribute to tumor growth. However several tests have shown no cancer growth in rats. Although several tests have proven cycloastragenol improves age markers, the science is still nascent.

But truth be told. The Chinese have been using astragalus 黄芪 for centuries. Traditional Chinese Medicine claim that Astragalus can prolong life and it has been used to treat fatigue, allergies, colds, heart disease and diabetes, improve energy.

If you want to consider this supplement, there are several cycloastragenol products on the market and they are not cheap. TA-65 pictured above costs more than US$1,000.

Anti-oxidant foods

Spike proteins cause inflammatory and oxidative stress in the bodies. The oxidation process involves free radicals attacking the guanine base-rich telomeres and shortens it. Consuming lots of anti-oxidant foods neutralise free radicals thus help to protect the telomeres. Look for foods rich in omega 3s, vitamins C and E, and beta carotene. Helps if you are a heavy coffee drinker. See Telomeres and lifestyle factors: roles in cellular aging by Jue Lin, Elissa Epel, Elizabeth Blackburn (2012)

Exercise

Exercise burns harmful fats and eliminates harmful toxins from cells. It also reduces oxidative stress which helps to minimise shortening of telomeres. It has been observed that people who exercise has longer telomeres than those who live a sedentary lifestyle, proving the adage those who exercise generally lives longer.

A warning, especially for those who has taken booster shots, not to go to the max in their exercise. In my previous blog I did mention spike proteins damage endothelial cells, ie those found in the inside lining of blood vessels, lymph vessels, and the heart. This is the most probable reason why all those young sports persons drop dead in their tracks when they get into top gear. The damaged cells are unable to carry sufficient oxygen their body demands.

See Physical Activity on Telomere Length as a Biomarker for Aging: A Systematic Review by Marlies Schellnegger et el (2022).

Eat Less

Lee Kuan Yew once advised key to healthy meals is not to eat to fullness. He said he partakes up to 80% capacity. Lee lived to 91. Jaggi Vasudev, better known as The Sadhguru (uneducated guru) say he partakes only a single meal a day for health reasons. 

A restrictive calorie regime seems to have an effect on lifespan and telomere length. There have been several tests on mice which showed a restrictive diet resulted in 66% increase in lifespan. The rodents looked healthier. There has been no authoritative test results on humans. See Caloric restriction has a protective effect on chromosomes by Maria A. Blasco et el 2013


Do your loved ones and friends who have taken the shots a favour. Share this with them.

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HOW'S YOUR TELOMERES - THE PRIMARY CAUSE OF PANDEMIC DEATHS IGNORED BY GOVERNMENTS

It's strange how life has a way of circling back. Some twenty, twenty-five years ago, when I was exploring business opportunities, I zoomed in to two specific areas -- nanotechnology and vanity products. Both now seem to feature in my current interest in trying to understand the global mess of the pandemic and vaccines. I mentioned in some older blogs my earlier understanding of nanotechnology helped me speed up my understanding of the novel genetic vaccines. In vanity products I wasn't searching for the plain vanilla types, but novel nanotechnology-based ones. There were several products which were just breaking into the markets, but lack of capital fundings eventually derailed my efforts.

In vanity products, I was searching for some new approach to anti-ageing. That got me on the trail of the fountain of youth, which I understood at the time, to be any breakthrough technology that can lengthen our telomeres.

First, let me bore you with some simple backgrounder on cell biology which is a prerequisite. DNA (Deoxyribonucleic acid) is a string-like molecule packed into a structure called chromosomes. DNA is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The DNA carries 4 nucleotide bases that form the genetic code of a person. The telomeres are the compounds at the end of the DNA chain. Look at telomere as the metal clips at the end of a shoe string. The telomeres protect the DNA chain from snipping off or fusing with the ends of other DNA strains and corrupting both. The chromosome lies in the nucleus of a cell. There are 46 chromosomes in each cell, half inherited from mom and half from dad.

We are all made up of cells. There are about 37.2 trillion cells in each person. Old cells die off and are replaced by new cells all the time. Cells replicate by division. One cell will divide itself into two exactly similar cells. We are growing when more new cells are created than cells replaced. We begin to age when our body stop producing new cells.

In cell duplication process, telomeres play a very important role in ensuring integrity of genetic code. With each replication, the telomeres get shortened until it is no longer able to divide. The cell is then said to reach a state of senescence. That is when a cell ages and permanently stops dividing but does not die. Over time, large numbers of old (or senescent) cells can build up in tissues throughout the body. It is the process of growing old. That as a person ages, the telomeres are shortened is not up for argument. It is an established fact. Telomeres is like our biological clock. It will run out one day.

So the fountain of youth rests with a product that will continue to restore telomeres and thus stops or slows down the aging process. The good news is there is a natural enzyme produced by our body called telomerase. This restores telomeres to the DNA chain which then helps cell division again. The bad news is telomerase does not express in somatic (body) cells but in reproductive cells. On the other hand telomerase expresses in cancerous somatic cells thus promotes the runaway multiplication of malign cells.

Shorter telomeres, more diseases

The length of telomeres sort of establishes a person's biological age. Actually, the biological age of a person's specific organ, depending on what type of cells are impacted. With ageing, comes lots of associated diseases. Many studies and tests have long since established shortened telomeres to various diseases. For example :

- People with shortened telomeres have lower life expectancy and higher risks of contracting infectious diseases, ie they have diminished immune system. Richard M Cawthon et el 2003 (Ref #1).
- People with hypertension has shorter telomeres. This proves a relationship of shortening telomeres to cardiovascular and heart diseases. Zhiwei Yan et el 2009 (Ref #2)
- People with short telomeres are more predisposed to myocardial infarction and vascular disorder. Robert Zee et el 2009 (Ref #3)
- Short telomeres is also a marker of bone aging. People with low telomeres are more inclined to develop osteoporosis.  A. M. Valdes et el 2009 (Ref #4).
- Shortened telomeres lead to dysfunction in cell division, genetic instability, cell damage and cancer development. Subjects with shortened telomeres develop significant cancers. Xifeng Wu et el 2003 (Ref #5)
- When the length of telomeres reaches the critical limit while cell division is still going one, the automatic activation of the DNA repair mechanism in the cell leads to genomic instability conducive to oncogenesis (formation of cancer). Joo-Shik Shin et el 2006 (Ref #6)

What has telomere shortening got to do with Covid 19?

Now to bring all these home to the pandemic and mRNA vaccines.

In this pandemic, we are introduced to the spike proteins which comes naturally from the SARS-Cov2 virus and artificially from the mRNA and modified adenovirus vaccines. We are also seeing (1) 'blood clots', (2) excess deaths, and (3) Sudden Death Syndrome.

The high incidence of massive clots reported by morticians are not actually blood clots, but some goovy protein built-up as byproducts of the lipids in the delivery systems of the vaccines. There is evidence of  self-assembly of nano-particles of the delivery system. Scary stuff.

Excess deaths have increased all over the world, and SDS incidents have accelerated. Governments argue over the medico-legal ramifications and the framing of numbers to fit official narratives of dying 'from' or 'with' covid, and no one cares about the elephant in the room. There is a pot pourri of causes of deaths. But what is glaring whether dying with or from Covid, all the causes seem to be diseases of old age. We see young people dying of heart attacks, accelerated cancers, neurodegenerative diseases or other numerous diseases due to weakened immune systems of old age. Millions of older persons down with Covid are diagnosed with comorbidities when they reported not knowing having had such diseases.  

Many studies have long shown links between shortened telomeres with common respiratory viral diseases and infection risks. As early as Nov 2020 Manar Ahmed Kamal1 et el (Ref #7) has shown that Sars-Cov2  affect more males than females (women has longer telomeres less prone to attrition) and amongst men, those above 50 are more susceptible. 

Antoine Froidure et el in Oct 2020 (Ref #8) uncovered a link between telomere length and COVID-19 outcome.  A control group of 500 patients without Covid had longer telomeres. 70 Covid patients had shortened telomeres and the presence of very short telomeres (of size less than the 10th percentile for age) was associated with a significantly higher risk. admission to ICU or death.

In Jan 2021 oncologist Maria Blasco (Ref #9) confirmed Froidure et el's findings. They measured telomere length in peripheral blood lymphocytes from Covid patients aged 29 to 85 and found that shorter telomeres are associated with increased disease severity. 

The best confirmation came from  Carlo Gaetano et el in June 2021 (Ref #10) that proved the link between telomere shortening in Covid patients and the acceleration of biological age. The study measured the biological age of 117 Covid survivors and 144 uninfected volunteers. There was a significant increase in the biological age of patients who had Covid. A significant shortening of telomeres is observed in the post-covid cohort. ACE2 expression was decreased by 73% in post-covid patients. From the evidence they hypothesized that certain epigenetic alterations (means underlying changes in the cells) are associated with the post-covid state, especially in younger patients  (< 60 years old).

The question is, has the spike protein of SARS-Cov2 anything to do with this?

"I believe the Spike Protein is acting as a Progeria Drug – delivered via the Endothelium to all organs. I don’t know, yet, what to do. I am deeply saddened, and numb. No matter what evidence or hypothesis is presented – the band plays on….. And it is playing a funeral march." Walter M Chesnut (Researcher)

A Chinese medical team Yuyang Lei et el (Ref #11) showed in Mar 2021 that the main pathogen of the Covid-19 virus is its spike protein. The researchers isolated spike protein of the virus by installing it on an empty nucleus, then inoculated it into guinea pigs. The animals showed lesions in the lungs and arteries associated with inflammation of endothelial cells. But what about human beings? The team reproduced the in vitro experiment on healthy human endothelial cells. The result -- spike proteins bound to ACE2 receptors, damaging the cells' mitochondria, causing micro-thrombosis and endothelitis. Endothelial cells are the main type of cells found in the inside lining of blood vessels, lymph vessels, and the heart. The conclusions are clear: the Spike protein alone causes most of the symptoms of Covid-19.

This begs the question. How does the spike protein shorten the telomeres?

In our bodies are proteins called cytokine which are messengers running between cells to manage inflammation. A Covid infection activates massive cytokines, thus the term "cytokine storm'. Excessive cytokines cause oxidative stress. In simple terms, there is much bio-chemical work going on in our tissues and the body is stressed out trying to detoxify a lot of harmful reactive products. 

These two closely linked phenomena (chronic inflammation and oxidative stress) are the basis of most cardiovascular diseases (atherosclerosis, thrombosis, etc.), neurodegenerative diseases (Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, etc.), cancers, and also ageing. That means the telomeres are shortened. 

The link between oxidation and shortening of telomeres has long been established. There have been many studies and reports on this, eg Thomasvon Zglinicki 2002 (Ref #12). 

The spike proteins of SARs-Cov2 cause inflammation and associated oxidative stress. Oxidation is carried out by free radicals which are oxygen carrying molecules with uneven numbers of electrons. In the oxidation process, certain chemical bases are attacked, particularly guanines. If you refer to the feature image above, the GGG codes in the telomere refers to 3 consecutive guanines. The telomeres are rich in guanines, thus they are targeted, corrupted and shortened.

SARS-CoV2 infection results in the Covid syndrome which is characterized, in the worst case, by severe respiratory distress, pulmonary and cardiac fibrosis, release of inflammatory cytokines and immunosuppression. In the end, it is chronic inflammation which activates the coagulation phenomenon that ultimately causes death in patients with Covid. In effect, Covid is an inflammation and oxidative stress disease.

The $ million the question - do spike proteins of the vaccines shorten the telomeres?

In an opinion piece,  Luc Montagnier et el 2021 (Ref #13) published in France Soir on 30 Aug 2021, made a strong case that the spike proteins of mRNA and adenovirus vaccines are causing exactly the same inflammation and oxidative stress as the virus.

Luc Montagnier was a French virologist and joint recipient, with Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Harald zur Hausen, of the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his discovery of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). He had been a proponent of SARS-Cov2 being man-made from the very beginning and had been vocal in calling out the risks of the novel vaccines. It is no surprise his voice was shut out and testimony to the crusade against anti-vaccine voices is to be seen in the Wikipedia page on Montagnier which ends with "There is no evidence that SARS-CoV-2 was genetically engineered".  Montagnier passed away on 8 Feb 2022.

The spike proteins of the vaccines are made to be genetically similar to spikes of SARS-Cov2 and it is to be expected our body reacts similarly to them, causing the same inflammation and oxidative stress and shortening the telomeres. Vaccine manufacturers lied about the short life span of the spike proteins and that they remain in the vicinity of the deltoid region. Since then, it is known the spike proteins travel to various organs and remain in the body for months. It may jolly well be that millions in hospitals and thought to be down with Covid infection never had the virus but were suffering the same symptoms brought about by the vaccine spike proteins.

The evidence is clear that there is a primary cause for the high mortality brought about by both the Covid and vaccines. Yet governments all over the world choose to get lost in the pot pourri of causes, missing the wood for the trees. They stick to the narratives of big pharma-sponsored voices, turning a blind eye to those that show we are dealing with an approved toxic drug that kills with the inflammatory and oxidative stress diseases, and which shortens telomeres.

Progeria, also known as Hutchinson-Gilford syndrome, is an extremely rare, progressive genetic disorder that causes children to age rapidly. There is growing concern among scientists that the spike protein is causing accelerated ageing. A person may be 26 years old and looks like one, but walking around with a a biologically 90 year old heart, 60 year old kidneys, 50 year old uterus......  Walter M Chesnut is right. The novel vaccines are progeria drugs and governments are listening to the band playing a funeral march.

References :

#1      Association between telomere length in blood and mortality in people aged 60 years or olde by Richard M Cawthon et el (2003)

#2      Short telomeres and prognosis of hypertension in a  Chinese population by Zhiwei Yang et el (2009)

#3      Association of shorter mean telomere length with risk of incident myocardial infarction: a prospective, nested case-control approach by Robert Y L Zee 1, Sherri E Michaud, Soren Germer, Paul M Ridker (2009)

#4      Telomere length in leukocytes correlates with bone mineral density and is shorter in women with osteoporosis by A.M. Valdes et el (2007)

#5      Telomere dysfunction: a potential cancer predisposition factor by Xifeng Wu et el (2003)

#6      The role of telomeres and telomerase in the pathology of human cancer and aging by Joo-Shik Shin, Angela Hong, Michael J Solomon, C Soon Lee (2006)

#7      Sex and Age Differences in Telomere Length and Susceptibility to COVID-19  by Manar Ahmed Kamal1, Kareem Reda Alamiry and Mahmoud Zaki (N0v 2020)

#8     Short telomeres increase the risk of severe COVID-19  by Antoine Froidure et el (Oct 2020) 

#9     Shorter telomere lengths in patients with severe COVID-19 disease  by Maria A Blasco et el (Jan 2021)

#10    Evidence for Biological Age Acceleration and Telomere Shortening in COVID-19 Survivors  by  Carlo Gaetano et el (Jun 2021) 

#11    SARS-CoV-2 Spike Protein Impairs Endothelial Function via Downregulation of ACE 2 by Yuyang Lei et el 31 Mar 2021

#12    Oxidative stress shortens telomeres  by Thomasvon Zglinicki (Jul 2002)

#13    SARS-COV2 would accelerate biological age by Xavier Azalbert, Luc Montagnier et el 30 Aug 2021

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MAS FOREX RESERVES & ACCOUNTING FOR FOREIGN CURRENCY ISSUES

Following the news of the massive loss on foreign exchange translation by the MAS for y/e 31 Mar 2022 there was much discussion in social media on the confusion of the accounting. For me, it's all basic accounting. The only issue I was not clear about at the time was whether the RMGS (Reserve Management  Government Securities are denominated in SGD or foreign currency.

In July/August I had a lengthy discussion with Jamus Lim on the topic. We had several exchanges on Facebook which is not really a good platform for serious discussion. I was pleased Jamus had the interest, concern and patience to spend time with me for mutual sharing of opinions. We parried over a few issues mainly on MAS' exposure to foreign currency and how losses are accounted for. On RMGS, Jamus eventually believed it is SGD-denominated according to his contacts. I too have come to this conclusion.

From various comments in social media, it is apparent most folks, including accounting professionals, do not really appreciate foreign currency revaluation and translation treatment in financial institutions, including central banks. For these institutions, money is a stock-in-trade, and their accounting for currency P&L is somewhat different from legacy methods. 

MAS and movement of currency reserves.

Assume functional (base) currency is SGD.

1.     As a central bank, the job of MAS is managing monetary policies. Unlike for-profit companies that can hedge their currency risks, MAS has to take the market risks. That means it is exposed to the vagaries of currency rate volatilities. Its huge forex reserves expose it to risks of huge forex losses if SGD continues to appreciate.
2.     Persistent trade surplus puts upward pressure on the SGD. MAS forced to buy foreign currencies, thus accumulates huge fx reserves.
3.     When MAS buys GBP (as an example) it involves a foreign exchange transaction. Asset (Cash-GBP) and (Spot position - GBP) both increase. Asset (Banks reserve a/c - SGD) and Liability (Spot position - SGD) both decrease. The GBP spot position is exposed to daily revaluation.

4.     When MAS sells GBP it involves a foreign exchange transaction. Asset (Cash-GBP) and (Spot position - GBP) both decrease. Asset (Banks reserve a/c - SGD) and Liability (Spot position - SGD) both increase. The GBP spot position is exposed to daily revaluation.

5.     When rates go up, the GDP positions is valued less in SGD terms, thus creating a currency loss.  On day-to-day basis, exchange rates go up and down, thus daily revaluation gains or losses more or less evens out.
6.     Trend line of SGD appreciation means over longer term, MAS makes loss in GBP reserves. 

7.     Forex P&L are cumulative from daily revaluation of open USD spot position. 

MAS and transfer of currency reserves to GIC 
Assume functional (base) currency is SGD. The term 'government' here means the Accountant General Office.

8.     MAS has GBP (as example) reserves far in access of its needs for monetary policy management purposes. It seeks to transfer access forex reserves out to GIC to be better invested.

9.     Government SGD receipts are all funnelled into their cash account at MAS. The government maintains an optimum cash balance for their needs. Some SGD funds are invested in liquid short term securities, excess is transferred to GIC for long term investment.

10.    In the past, the needs in (8) and (9) are met by MAS transfering GBP to GIC. This is in effect, government converting at spot rate to change the excess SGD to GBP. 
11.    When MAS transfers out GBP using govt SGD cash balances :
- In govt books, the funds move from Cash (SGD) to Investments (SGD). A change of one asset to another form of asset, same currency. There is no forex exposure.
- In MAS book, it involves a currency exchange transaction. Asset (Cash - GBP) and Liability (Spot position - GBP) are both reduced; its Asset (Spot position - SGD) and Liability (Govt Cash a/c - SGD) are reduced. The GBP spot position is exposed to rate volatility..
- In GIC books, it takes on asset (Cash - GBP) and liability (capital - GBP), thus no currency risks. (If GIC uses the foreign currency to invest in a different currency asset, then it creates currency risks -- but that is a different issue).
12.    This mechanism of (10) works but the problem is MAS accumulates forex reserves at a rate much faster than the government SGD cash balance can build up. 
13.    Thus the introduction of RMGS. There is no need for the Govt cash balance to build up. Govt issues RMGS which is SGD-denominated. MAS subscribes to the issue. 
14.    On issuance of RMGS, MAS pays for the subscription in  foreign currency based on spot rates per RMGS Act:
- In Govt books, Liability (Securities Fund - SGD) and Asset (Investment - SGD) both increase. There is no foreign currency risk.
- In MAS books it involves a currency transaction.  Asset (Cash - GBP) and Liability (Spot position - GBP) both decrease; its  Asset (RMGS securities - SGD) and Liability (Spot position - SGD) both increase. GBP spot position is exposed to rate volatility.
- In GIC books Asset (Cash - GBP) and Liability (capital - GBP) both increase. There is no currency risk. (If GIC uses the foreign currency to invest in a different currency asset, then it creates currency risks -- but that is a different issue).
15.   On redemption of RMGS, the govt has to pay back MAS in foreign currencies based on spot rate per the RMGS Act.
- In govt books Asset (Cash at MAS - SGD) and Liability (Securities Fund - SGD) both decrease. No foreign exchange involved.
- In MAS books it involves a currency transaction.  Asset (Cash - GBP) and Liability (Spot position - GBP) both increase; its  Asset (RMGS securities - SGD) and Liability (Spot position - SGD) both decrease. GBP spot position is exposed to rate volatility.

- In GIC books asset (Cash - GBP) and liability (capital - GBP) decrease. No foreign exchange involved. 

The transfer of forex reserves to GIC is always explained away as moving funds in excess of needs to GIC where it can be better invested in longer term assets to earn better ROI. There are 2 other benefits. First, huge forex reserves in MAS attracts criticism and complaints of state currency manipulation. Transferring out and reducing the numbers in the books of MAS helps to allay the criticism. Second, it reduces currency risk exposure of the MAS. Sort of killing three birds with one stone.

The RMGS Act does not specify the currency denomination except that settlement for both subscription and redemption is in foreign currency. I sought the input of the AGO for confirmation, solely for academic interest purpose, as to whether RMGS is SGD-denominated. My request went unanswered. I don't understand what is so secretive about this.  Finally, I concluded RMGS are indeed SGD-denominated by comparing the numbers in both MAS and govt financial statements.

It seems to me there is a lack of literature written from a practical point of view, not an academic discourse,on how banks handle foreign exchange accounting. It is an esoteric subject even accounting professionals not in the banking sector would probably be hesitant. This is not to say they are any less intelligent, but that they have no practical experience.

The above description pre-supposes MAS uses multicurrency system with daily revaluation. It is inconceivable that MAS, with balance sheet size of S$697b (2022), is still using antiquated single currency system.

"In the multi-currency systems of banks, the accounting treatment of foreign currency transactions and currency translation do not apply. It is a revelation to many outside the industry".... Pat Low

Multi-currency systems in brief:

- Each currency has a self-balancing ledger.
- Other than the functional currency, all other currencies are considered foreign currencies.
- Transactions in respect of a single foreign currency (example making foreign currency payments) do not involve forex gains or losses.
- Only foreign exchange transactions involve forex P&L.
- Umatured forward FX transactions are revalued daily and taken into unrealised currency P&L..
- Matured FX transactions are revalued on settlement and taken into realised currency P&L.
- Matured FX transactions are settled which creates spot positions..
- Brought forward foreign currency spot positions are revalued daily and taken into Revaluation P&L. .
- Financial reporting is the consolidation of all currency ledgers into a reporting currency. There is no translation P&L in converting to a reporting currency.

From the above, it can be seen that on transfer of foreign currencies to GIC, ie on date of disposal, there is no exchange loss on the part of MAS. There were a lot of socmed discussion talking about realised currency losses on disposal of foreign currency assets. The computation of realised losses is made on the settlement of foreign exchange contracts. For spot contracts, the currency P&L is not significant as the book rate is likely to be very close to the spot rate used for the transaction. The huge losses of MAS for the year 2022 was cumulative daily revaluation of currency spot positions built up over over time.  Similarly, in the future should RMGS be redeemed, govt will return foreign currencies to MAS based on spot rates. There will be very little currency P&L as the spot and book rates will be very similar. 

To demonstrate my point about difficulty of understanding multi-currency accounting in banks, check this article by a top public accounting firm in Singapore that wrote on the subject matter for the Central Bank of Cambodia. It contains flawed fundamentals as indicated in the notations I made on the document. After going through it, I am certain most readers would be none the wiser.

If pros like this article creators cannot even explain it right, you can appreciate how confusing it is. I decided to write a technical ebook to fill what seems to me a knowledge gap. I have now completed the content and currently studying which is the best digital platform to monetise it. Currently looking at how to self-publish since I do not even have a shoestring budget.

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CPIB WENT AFTER THE SERVANTS NOT THE MASTERS

The Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau issued stern warnings on 11 January 2023 to six individuals who were formerly senior management staff of Keppel Offshore & Marine Limited for their roles in the case of the bribery of Brazil's state oil company Petrobas. Singaporeans view this as not even amounting to a slap on the wrist. There is public outcry against a sense of rules-for-thee-but-not-for-me kind of justice. Although many ordinary Singaporeans feel justice has not been adequately and equitably served, and have made their voices heard in social media, but there has been no fair articulation of the legal basis of what they stand on.

A short recap of the case. In 2014 Brazilian police conducted Operation Car Wash in a huge money laundering investigation. It napped more than 1,000 suspects including very high government officials and politicians. The investigations expanded into bribery and corruption involving embezzlement at Petrobas. It resulted in the jailing of 3 former ex-presidents including  Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Lula was released from prison recently and supposedly won the 2022 presidential election. Keppel was just one of the enablers caught up in the massive investigation. American DOJ took jurisdiction and Jeffrey Chow, legal officer of Keppel was arrested. Keppel and Chow were charged under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act for corruptly making bribe payments of about US$55m to Petrobas officials to secure 13 contracts and make profits such as US$350m from a particular project.  In 2017,  Keppel was found guilty and agreed to a global settlement for US$422.2m (US$105.5 for US, US$211.1 for Brazil and US$105.6m for Singapore). In 2018 CPIB, placed 6 Keppel employees on investigation. 

Keppel disguised the bribe payment as consultation fees and made several payments over a period of time. If you are wondering how come the US had jurisdiction, well the bribes were in US$, they made use of the US banking system, and Keppel has a US office.

The DOJ went after Chow for obvious reasons - to turn him into a key prosecution witness. In a plea bargain, Chow gave evidence against Keppel. He was sentenced in 2019 to 1 year probation to be served at his residence in Singapore and fined US$75,000. Last reported in 2019, Chow was jobless in Singapore. We don't know if he is driving Grab today.


CPIB's lexicon of equivocation

"CPIB conducted investigations into the six individuals who had allegedly conspired with each other to give bribe payments totalling about US$55 million to foreign consultants involved in KOM’s business interests in Brazil. These consultants then used these monies to pay bribes to Petrobras officials." ... CPIB

CPIB prefers to say "allegedly" when Keppel had already admitted guilt in the global settlement agreement.

"This case is complex and transnational, involving multiple authorities and witnesses from several countries. There are evidentiary difficulties in cases of such nature. Many of the documents are located in different jurisdictions. In addition, key witnesses are located outside of Singapore and cannot be compelled to give evidence here. The decision whether to prosecute the six individuals for criminal offences has to take into consideration all relevant factors, such as the culpability of each individual, the available evidence and what is appropriate in the circumstances. Having taken these into consideration, stern warnings were issued to the six individuals." ... CPIB

Firstly, the statement seeks to exculpate Keppel from acts of the employees. In an employee-employer situation, agency relationship exists when the employees act under the authorisation of the company. The scope of employee functions determines the authority of the company and there is no doubt such is the case here. The doctrine of respondeat superior applies – “let the master answer for the servant”. Keppel has vicarious liability. CPIB should be investigating the master and not the servants.

Secondly, on evidentiary difficulties due to different jurisdictions is hogwash. The CPIB made no comments on whether they made attempts to liase with the authorities in Brazil and US. Last year 11 January 2021, Teo Suya Bik Judy, 68-year-old Singaporean female, was sentenced to 41 months’ imprisonment and a penalty of S$2,320,864.10 and Teo Chu Ha Henry, 72-year-old Singaporean male, was sentenced to 50 months’ imprisonment. The duo conspired to provide insider information to a Chinese company which allowed it to win a tender to provide logistics services to Seagate in China. CPIB worked with Chinese authorities, such as the Shanghai City Zhabei District People’s Procuratorate and received invaluable assistance from them in the form of critical evidentiary records such as bank statements, and assistance in interviews and statement-taking under the mutual legal assistance framework spanning over a few years. (For details read here.) 

Thirdly, the Yap Chwee Khim v American Home Assurance Co 2001 case demonstrates the court is prepared to look into an extraterritorial case and do judicial review of a decision of a foreign jurisdiction. 

Yap v American Home was a case involving 60-year-old Singaporean, Mr Lim Mah Chan, who was found dead on 2 Jun 1997 in a bathtub of water in a hotel in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Mah Chan had been on a 5-day packaged tour and his companion was Lim Chok Young, ex-husband of Yap. Cambodian Investigation Committee found no foul play and ruled accidental death, no autopsy was conducted. 

Mah Chan had 5 insurance policies and had willed his assets to Yap. One insurer paid up, the others refused and Yap sued. The lower court ruled against Yap who appealed. The Higher Court upheld the ruling and agreed with the lower court the death of Mah Chan was suspicious and absence of autopsy weighed strongly against the appellate. I recall back then I was amazed at the decision that a Singapore court with no discovery process could by simple judicial reasoning, override a foreign investigative finding. 

CPIB had all the documentation from the American DOJ and the US court decision. Would the court be able to do a judicial review and agree or disagree with the findings of the foreign jurisdiction?

Fourthly, the main witness in the trial in US was Jeremy Chow. As Keppel's legal officer, Chow drafted all those incriminating contracts. The DOJ went after Chow with a criminal charge. It's the usual ploy to get a star witness and they got what they wanted as Chow turned state witness. Chow lives in our own backyard and I'm sure would be more than happy to oblige as witness for CPIB.


The Executive trap:

Chow had indicated he should have resigned but instead remained to work on the contracts, thus participating in the act of corruption. I recall a friend of decades ago who called me one day to let me know he had resigned as accountant as he refused to sign off on a stock take certification which inflated the inventory levels. Fudging closing stocks is one of the easiest ways to manipulate the bottom line. Higher closing stocks means lower cost of sales, which translates to higher gross profits. Many salaried professionals are often caught in a bind to overstep ethical and moral lines in furtherance of corporate objectives. Were the 6 Keppel employees in similar positions?  Was the sweetheart deal of just a warning a way out of the predicament and did it come with a non-disclosure agreement? Why are names not disclosed? Gag orders in a criminal case issued to protect the identities of accused persons, are only with the main intent of protecting the victim involved rather than the accused person. It does not apply in this instance.


Failure to report a crime: 

Under Section 202 of the Penal Code, “whoever, knowing or having reason to believe that an offence has been committed, intentionally omits to give any information respecting that offence which he is legally bound to give, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 6 months, or with fine, or with both”.

CPIB was faced with the sensitive task of investigating how far up the chain of command did the decision for extending bribes to secure contracts go. It's a stretch to lay out that in Keppel the modus operandi of offering bribes to the extent of US$55m were strictly line manager decisions and CEO was kept out of the loop. Were the CEO and the board privy to the criminal act, either as participant or had knowledge? Does the operating unit have full independence, or does the parent unit monitor certain activities? If not officially, then at least in social settings these closely-knit elites would have had conversations over meals and toast to contracts won and how they were won.

CPIB has complete independence in criminal investigation as it reports directly to the Prime Minister. We have a delicate situation here as the ultimate parent is Temasek and the CEO is the wife of the PM. It's a huge conflict of interest situation that concerned citizens have raised alarm bells for years. 

The lack of evidence before us is persuasive that the sweetheart deal to the 6 employees was most probably to stop the bucks in their tracks to protect powerful incumbents, several of whom most likely have knowledge but failed to report as required by law.


What will other interested parties do:

SGX as the front-line regulator and operator of the securities and derivatives markets in 

Singapore, has remained silent. So too the Monetary Authority of Singapore that regulates the SGX. 

Will the IRAS review Keppel's tax returns and disallow the US$55m bribe paid out?


Conclusion:

What extraterritorial effect means to Singaporeans is a conviction in a foreign jurisdiction is not necessarily the end of your woes. On retuning to Singapore one may be charged again under Singapore law if the crime is one which is also punishable under local legislation. This is not double jeopardy and is only acted in cases relating to corruption, money laundering, drug and human trafficking and other very serious crimes. 

The AG didn't go after Keppel may be due to the fact the company has paid US$106.5m to Singapore under the global resolution agreement. This may be construed as having been charged and found guilty in Singapore.

The meek and soft views of the local legal profession in the todayonline 12 Jan 2022 article  is hardly surprising in the land with kiassu kiassi bochup syndrome.

Singapore's squeaky clean image has taken another blow. CPIB's non-action is a message to Singaporeans. Nothing to see here. Move on. Try looking at it from another another angle. The Singapore government had a windfall of US$105.6m, never mind it's the left hand paying to the right hand.

In going after the servants and not the masters, a stern warning is a compromise.

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SPH MEDIA FUDGED CIRCULATION NUMBERS - THE ISSUES ABOVE THE DIN

SPH media fudged it's circulation numbers. What really happened is not yet fully understood. What's been released to the public is in March 2022, it initiated an internal review covering the period September 2020 to March 2022. This review uncovered errors in circulation numbers which have been overstated by about 12% or about 90,000. Three key personnel have recently exited the company.

A popular foreign blogger who quaterbacks for the government, pushes the narrative of SPH releasing the damaging findings of their internal review is evidence of integrity of state-controlled media. He jeers those who view the state media as propaganda, to the cheers of his Facebook echo chamber of followers. This really is sad. Regardless of political leanings, we should all make an effort to read different narratives and then form our own opinion. In this particular instance, the blogger and his horde of fans clearly have fixation on only one source of information. They are unaware it was a scoop by Wake Up SG who pursued a source-based information about key personnel being let go that broke the story. SPH had no choice after that but to go public.

Incumbent CEO Teo Lay Lim took over the helm on 1 Mar 2022. It was obviously a very wise move of her to initiate the internal review which lays the blame squarely on her predecessor General Ng Yat Chung (1 Sep 2017 - 30 Apr 2022). The internal review started in March 2022 which certainly could not have taken 8 months to complete. It is very likely the situation was known for several months. The sensitivity of the information would have demanded a tight lid over it. Singaporeans know too well that for the government to release such damaging information, it would have to be for a more important purpose. There is none that I can conjure up. For CEO Teo to unilaterally release the information would have ensured some internal top level warfare. No neophyte CEO would go against the Ministry. The only logical conclusion is they went tight-lipped for as long as possible. By doing so, SPH puts their integrity in double jeopardy.

What is not known at this stage is whether it was intentional or negligence. If it was negligence, what rocket science is involved in computation of circulation numbers that 3 key personnel can get it wrong? If it was intentional on their own volition, what possibly could be the motivation? Something does not add up. It seems to me the sacking of 3 key personnel was an act to put a dog off the scent. But from what?    

If it was intentional, who was behind this and what was the agenda? SPH Media had 2 main business segments - a real estate and a media. Whilst real estate is profitable, media was bleeding profusely and a decision to its future had to be made. Was the over statement of circulation numbers an attempt to persuade policy makers to delay the death knell for the failing media business? Did it play a role in influencing policy makers to spin the media segment into a separate Company Limited by Guarantee, supported by government funding of S$180m annually for the next 5 years?

In US, the SEC is the regulatory authority and fudging of circulation numbers is a very serious offence with very high fines, sometimes with withdrawal of licences. In Singapore, the Ministry of Communication and Information has jurisdiction. There is no precedence in Singapore, so the public waits.

As regards contractual liabilities, over stating circulation numbers obviously disadvantages the advertisers who have no way of checking on such data other than to rely on what they have been told. This is the reason why the SEC in US takes such misrepresentation very seriously. This is the reason why when Elon Musk revealed the huge numbers of bots in Twitter, all hell broke loose. In later years, under a non-partisan SEC, the old management of Twitter may face their reckoning. It matters not whether it is negligence or intentional, some punitive consequence must prevail. But don't expect any aggrieved advertiser to take a case against media, especially in Singapore.

I cannot find any laws broken under Info-communications Media Development Authority Act 2016 or Newspaper and Printing Presses Act 1974 that could be pursued for both negligent and intentional act of overstating the numbers. At best, there could be some breach of code of conduct. A misdemeanour.

One area where there may be actual breach of law is in GST. Circulation numbers affect the computation of foreign-domestic data which determines GST-rated and zero-GST. The IRAS would be interested to know what the real numbers are.

If the overstatement of numbers was intentional, the executives who were let go obviously acted under direction. Were they thrown under the bus in the same manner as lower level managers of Keppel in the Petrobas bribery scandal? 

After the story broke and the internet was on fire, the typical Singapore scenario of no-shows by the leadership in a crisis is once again on full display. CEO Teo and Minister Josephine Teo are both silent. Once again, a spokesperson takes centre stage. MCI gave the safe template comment of 'the situation is under review'.

And finally, what are the real numbers and what does it mean for the financial viability of SPH Media? Has it reached a red flag for the futility of maintaining a state-controlled voice in media? Is it time to stop wasting S$180m annual funding and open up the space for more private enterprise to enter the market? 

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ON A CLEAR DAY YOU CAN SEE TEMASEK

This 15th century navigation Mao Kun map of Admiral Zheng He's naval expedition is the first recorded document in history showing the settlement of Temasek or 淡馬錫 (Tan-Ma-Sek), the island arrowed in the top left. The sovereign wealth fund Temasek Holdings (Pte) Ltd takes its name from this early settlement. Just as the settlement has grown into the global city of Singapore of today, Temasek Holdings has come a long way since its inception in 1974 to what it is today, a behemoth of an investment company. As at 31 Mar 2022 it has a portfolio valued S$403 billion.

Below is a chart of Temasek and its fully-owned investment subsidiaries which are known. There are probably still several others not yet discovered. Excluded are the various operating subsidiaries.

Outside of its HQ in Singapore, Temasek maintains 14 fully-manned offices in 8 countries. It is currently fitting out the latest office in Paris which will open early this year. For an investment portfolio heavy on technology startups, it is glaring Temasek does not have an office in Israel which has been at the technological forefront for the past several decades.

When looking at behemoths, I am reminded of something I heard when I was green behind my ears in the corporate world. This came from Edmund Tie when he was a director with Jones Lang Wootton, at the time when he was just about to depart to set up his own real estate consulting firm. The reason for him and a few of his associates to pull out was what he explained as too many expatriate 'Tua Peh Kong" in JLW. The literal translation of Tua Peh Kong is 'grand uncle'. It is a Chinese deity, the God of Earth, the one who provides personal protection in one's environment. There is always a small Tua Peh Kong temple at a Chinese cemetery. In business, Tua Peh Kong is used as a derogatory term to refer to the dead weights, the non-productive fat cats in the company. The Japanese refers to these as 'window executives'. One wonders how many tua peh kongs there are in a behemoth sovereign wealth fund.

For many years after incorporation 1974, Temasek operated as a backwater investment outfit, putting Singapore reserves into the domestic equities market. It also operated as the booking unit of privatised government-linked companies. All these changed sometime in 2002 when Mdm Ho Ching joined the company as an Executive Director, and then moved on to take the helm as CEO in 2004.

The size of the fund had by then grew too big to be concentrated on a single local market. Ho Ching's arrival saw a shift into internationalising investment portfolio and adoption of modern risk taking methodologies. Although these are paradigm shifts, Ho Ching's legacy at Temasek is much more.

To chase better yields, Temasek moved from traditional 60-40 equities-bonds investment into higher risk private equities. Venture capital began to take on higher weight in its portfolio as it dived into funding start-ups built on cash-burning models. These are ventures where the investment makes no returns for years, but the entrepreneurs can buy private jets (Wework), bungalows (Grab, FTX) long before the companies go IPO. These are also investments where there is no exit path except after IPO. The investor lives and dies with the venture pre-IPO.

Temasek has also gone into leveraged mode having taken on hundreds of millions of $ in debt. It is betting its investment expertise can bring in higher ROI on borrowed funds. 

Yet another change in Temasek investment mission is taking on venture building. This is somewhat similar to EDB's role in the past. Will management be stretched too thin? Can mercenary expertise be a long term fixture to ensure financial success? Similar programmes in competitive sports where we field naturalised foreign-born players have not been much of a success story. Neither was Chartered Semiconductor in the 1990s. Never reported in local media is Temasek's failed acquisition of Scandinavian energy exchange in order to index SLNG (Singapore Liquified Natural Gas), nor the upstream projects of Pavilion in some gasfields - see my blog on Orchard Energy. Having the financial muscle does not translate to a capability to run the operation. Lessons learnt not just from Chartered Semiconductor, but NOL.

Another new direction Temasek is moving into is mutual funds. It has set up closed-end and open-end funds. One new open-end fund is pending listing in a New York exchange. So it is no longer just investing state reserves, but is going into the business of managing other investors' wealth. There is the advantage of synergy as these fund management entities have access to the vast resources of the Temasek group. The reverse view is the socialising of Temasek's cost for the benefit of these funds. It is fair dinkum to suggest the closed-end fund investors would be the closely-knit well-heeled elites, certainly to include million dollar-salaried crowd in Singapore Inc. Will Temasek end up as some families personalised funds? With the same entity managing the funds of the state and private investors, the inevitability of conflict of interest is in plain sight. (Don't forget you first hear of this risk here).

Ho Ching has revamped a sleepy-eyed investment fund into a top-notch hyped up global investor able to wheel and deal at the top levels. This has to come about with compensation packages jacked up to the international levels of the fund management industry which can be mind-boggling. In an industry where top performers often move on to set up their own funds, Temasek has helped several departing talents by providing seed money to kick start depositor base for the new funds. Instead of loosing talent, Temasek invested in them. Put another way, the state investment company is putting funds into another investing firm to invest for them.  

The 2022 Review indicated Board Committees independent of management have been set up. These are chaired by non-executive directors, each with a specific task of looking into certain aspects like audit, compensation, risks, operations. This is a healthy development.

Temasek adopts the Santiago Principle which seeks to promote good governance and accountability in SWFs. It is definitely more transparent than GIC, the other SWF of Singapore. Nevertheless, Temasek continues to attract fair amount of criticisms, especially in specific asset failures. In the past, a certain Prof Christopher Balding use to be a prominent critic of Temasek and GIC. Take for example, this paper of his in 9 Feb 2012 "A Brief Research Note on Temasek Holdings and Singapore" with the cheeky sub-title "Mr Madoff Goes to Singapore" In essence, Balding made the point the annualised rate of return of 17% p.a. up to 2009 was impossible based on ROI of equity markets in the world. So either Temasek financials were hogwash or there is a huge portfolio of secret assets not disclosed. The good professor missed the point that Temasek kick-started its operation by the transfer of huge portfolio of government assets at cost. In the years that followed, as these government-linked companies were listed, Temasek portfolio made substantial valuation gains which tended to significantly make a positive bias in long term annualised rates. The impact of these initial assets transferred at cost has probably run its course by now and Temasek's long term 20 year moving annualised rates are no longer exagerrated by these early cheap portfolio.

Balding made a further study in 2015 that covered Temasek and GIC. Once again he made preposterous claims of missing assets of billions of dollars. I drop the link here in case readers wish to check it out. "A Brief Research Note on the Government Investment Corporation of Singapore, Temasek Holdings, and Singapore Public Finances".... Prof Chris Balding. I blogged in July 2021 that opposition figure Kenneth Jeyaratnam, who writes regularly about the reserves, flew out to Hongkong to meet up with Balding. As a concerned Singaporean, Jeyaratnam wanted to go through Balding's data, but left the meeting disappointed. He felt Balding's computation was not correct.

One wonders why an American professor teaching in a university somewhere in Beijing, China, had been so fixated on the state of reserves of Singapore. Some geopolitical propaganda effort cannot be completely ruled out. This is purely my guess, but such is a world we live in now. One needs to be constantly sensitive to context. The scale of Temasek's investments is massive and has political implications as it is government-owned and it frequently takes controlling stakes.

A good example of geopolitics at play is the failed attempt to secure the services of Chip Goodyear. Contracted to replace Ho Ching as CEO, Goodyear was already working in Temasek with official takeover timed for October 2009. In July he resigned and triggered rounds of speculation as to the reason for the sudden departure. These included :
- He was not given a free hand (Ridiculous suggestion. CEOs know they all report to shareholders)
- Ho Ching was still micro-managing and had designs to cling on to the job (Juvenile suggestion since her planned departure was already public knowledge).
- Goodyear's involvement in the 'Food for Oil' scandal with saddam Hussein's Iraq was an issue (Impossible since this was pre-fact and Temasek certainly was aware of the case).

- Goodyear was a mysterious character and there was indication he could be CIA asset (Too far fetched. Chip is from the Goodyear Tyre family. His last job was CEO of BHP Billiton where he successfully brought the troubled giant resource company back to financial health).
- His premature retirement from BHP was an issue (This is nonsense. He timed his early retirement at the height of the commodities market due to China's economic growth, so that he benefitted handsomely from the retirement package).

The best suggestion and the one I buy into, was provided by The Guardian. Goodyear's expertise was in commodities and resource industry. He came in to lead Temasek out of a portfolio too heavy on financial sector. Temasek had just exited from Bank of America with a S$6.7 billion losses after the 2007/2008 financial crisis. Temasek was trying to re-strategise into the energy and commodities market. In all probability, Goodyear's plans would have involved entering the mining sector. This would have been a path to competition with China, something the Singapore government is sensitive about. This suggestion has credence as Temasek Chair S. Dhabalan explained in broad terms the amicable breakup was due to differences over strategy. This is logical, reinforced with the fact Dhabalan is held in high regard as one of the more honest in the PAP leadership. 

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