Hong Kong and Singapore have crossed swords over their ambitions to be the world’s gold trading hub, but experts say the city holds an advantage over its Southeast Asian rival, citing its access to mainland China’s robust market.
As Hong Kong pushed ahead with measures to create an ecosystem for gold trading – highlighted as recently in the government’s budget late last month – the city state had reportedly been courting global heavyweights.
In response to the South China Morning Post’s queries about Singapore’s rumoured alliance with the world’s major market makers such as JP Morgan and UBS, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) did not deny the rumours and highlighted ongoing engagement with the sector.
“Since last year, MAS has been actively working with key gold market participants to look at ways to support the growth of the gold market in Singapore,” a spokesperson said.
Singapore’s central bank added it would share more details on key initiatives in due course.
Commodities trading, especially gold and silver, is back in vogue, with precious metal prices shooting through the roof amid growing geopolitical uncertainty.
