SINGAPORE: More than 600,000
To enable the direct transfer of these special discounted shares from the CPF Board to the shareholders' own accounts, Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash tabled the CPF (Amendment) Bill on Tuesday.
The special discounted shares scheme was introduced in October 1993, when Singtel became a publicly listed company. Through the scheme, Singaporeans who were CPF members could buy Singtel shares at a discounted price during its IPO in 1993 and again in 1996 using their CPF funds.
The special discounted shares, sold in two tranches in 1993 and 1996, are also known as ST "A" shares and ST2 shares respectively.
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At the time, the CPF Board was appointed as the trustee for Singtel’s special discounted shares. The scheme was introduced as part of the government’s plans to make Singapore a share-owning society, giving Singaporeans a greater stake in the country.
Singtel is the first and only company that sold shares through this scheme, with more than a million Singaporeans buying shares at the time.
Now, almost 615,000 Singaporeans hold these shares, said Singtel and the CPF Board in a joint press release on Tuesday (Apr 7).
Currently, if those who hold special discounted shares decide to sell them, the proceeds go to their CPF ordinary accounts.
From Apr 8, subsidiary legislation will be changed to waive CPF’s withdrawal conditions for the sale of Singtel special discounted shares. This means that those who hold special discounted shares and choose to sell them can withdraw the proceeds in cash, said Singtel and the CPF Board.
The payment will be made to the shareholders’ registered bank account with the CPF Board, they noted.
Given that the special discounted shares scheme has met its intent and the legacy trustee arrangement for CPF Board to support share ownership is no longer necessary, the government will support the share transfer, the press release read.
“The transfer will enable SDS holders who hold shares in their individual CDP accounts to consolidate all their holdings, making them easier to track and trade,” said Singtel and the CPF Board.
Of the 615,000 who hold special discounted shares, about three in five have individual CDP accounts and about a quarter own regular Singtel shares.
The special discounted shares make up 4.4 per cent of Singtel’s total shares, equivalent to about S$3.6 billion, based on a market cap of about S$83 billion.
Since the CPF Board is the current trustee, Singtel has to go through the agency to reach out to its retail investors who hold special discounted shares, said Singtel’s group chief financial officer Arthur Lang.
“We are also limited in terms of the type of corporate actions we can undertake, so there is a bit of friction in the process. And with all these additional layers, there will be additional costs,” he added.
After the shares are transferred, the process of organising events like annual general meetings or notifying shareholders about corporate actions will be simpler, said Mr Lang.
When the scheme was launched 30 years ago, share ownership was not prevalent among Singaporeans, which is why the CPF Board was appointed as the trustee, he noted.
With the prevalence of share ownership in Singapore today, the context has changed. Singtel thinks it is the right time for those who hold special discounted shares to have direct ownership, said Mr Lang, adding that this is why Singtel requested the share transfer now.
Today, the youngest holders of special discounted shares are above 50 years old, and the median shareholder has about 1,360 shares.
They would have bought shares in 1993 and 1996 for about S$2,000, and received additional loyalty shares equivalent to 40 per cent of their original shareholdings, noted the Singtel and the CPF Board.
As such, the median shareholder today would have received about S$5,000 in cumulative dividends, more than covering the CPF savings used to buy the shares and the interest they would have otherwise received in their CPF ordinary accounts.
At Singtel’s share price of S$5.03 at 1.10pm on Apr 7, 1,360 shares would be worth about S$6,840.
For those who choose to keep their shares, no action is required, said Singtel and CPF.
If the bill is passed,
Until Nov 21, individuals who choose to sell their shares can still retain the proceeds in their CPF ordinary accounts. After that, those who decide to sell their shares can receive the proceeds in cash.
Those who already sold their Singtel special discounted shares between Jan 1, 2025 and Apr 7, 2026 and had their sale proceeds credited to their CPF accounts can apply to withdraw their proceeds in cash.
The shares can be sold through Phillip Securities’ website, at SingPost branches, or through selected Singapore Exchange retail brokers.
Those who hold special discounted shares will receive a letter by mail from the CPF Board and Singtel by the end of April, which will contain information about their shares and the options available to them.
CPF Board and Singtel are also partnering with the Agency for Integrated Care to reach out to older and more vulnerable SDS holders who may not be as digitally savvy, they said.
This includes more than 20,000 individuals who have been identified as older SDS holders with lower CPF balances and who do not have CDP accounts.
Singtel is focused on preventing scams, said Mr Lang, stressing that CPF or Singtel employees will not ask for shareholders’ bank account details.
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To enable the direct transfer of these special discounted shares from the CPF Board to the shareholders' own accounts, Minister of State for Manpower Dinesh Vasu Dash tabled the CPF (Amendment) Bill on Tuesday.
The special discounted shares scheme was introduced in October 1993, when Singtel became a publicly listed company. Through the scheme, Singaporeans who were CPF members could buy Singtel shares at a discounted price during its IPO in 1993 and again in 1996 using their CPF funds.
The special discounted shares, sold in two tranches in 1993 and 1996, are also known as ST "A" shares and ST2 shares respectively.
CNA Games
Show More Show Less
At the time, the CPF Board was appointed as the trustee for Singtel’s special discounted shares. The scheme was introduced as part of the government’s plans to make Singapore a share-owning society, giving Singaporeans a greater stake in the country.
Singtel is the first and only company that sold shares through this scheme, with more than a million Singaporeans buying shares at the time.
Now, almost 615,000 Singaporeans hold these shares, said Singtel and the CPF Board in a joint press release on Tuesday (Apr 7).
WAIVED WITHDRAWAL CONDITIONS
Currently, if those who hold special discounted shares decide to sell them, the proceeds go to their CPF ordinary accounts.
From Apr 8, subsidiary legislation will be changed to waive CPF’s withdrawal conditions for the sale of Singtel special discounted shares. This means that those who hold special discounted shares and choose to sell them can withdraw the proceeds in cash, said Singtel and the CPF Board.
The payment will be made to the shareholders’ registered bank account with the CPF Board, they noted.
Given that the special discounted shares scheme has met its intent and the legacy trustee arrangement for CPF Board to support share ownership is no longer necessary, the government will support the share transfer, the press release read.
“The transfer will enable SDS holders who hold shares in their individual CDP accounts to consolidate all their holdings, making them easier to track and trade,” said Singtel and the CPF Board.
Of the 615,000 who hold special discounted shares, about three in five have individual CDP accounts and about a quarter own regular Singtel shares.
ADDITIONAL LAYERS, ADDITIONAL COSTS
The special discounted shares make up 4.4 per cent of Singtel’s total shares, equivalent to about S$3.6 billion, based on a market cap of about S$83 billion.
Since the CPF Board is the current trustee, Singtel has to go through the agency to reach out to its retail investors who hold special discounted shares, said Singtel’s group chief financial officer Arthur Lang.
“We are also limited in terms of the type of corporate actions we can undertake, so there is a bit of friction in the process. And with all these additional layers, there will be additional costs,” he added.
After the shares are transferred, the process of organising events like annual general meetings or notifying shareholders about corporate actions will be simpler, said Mr Lang.
When the scheme was launched 30 years ago, share ownership was not prevalent among Singaporeans, which is why the CPF Board was appointed as the trustee, he noted.
With the prevalence of share ownership in Singapore today, the context has changed. Singtel thinks it is the right time for those who hold special discounted shares to have direct ownership, said Mr Lang, adding that this is why Singtel requested the share transfer now.
Today, the youngest holders of special discounted shares are above 50 years old, and the median shareholder has about 1,360 shares.
They would have bought shares in 1993 and 1996 for about S$2,000, and received additional loyalty shares equivalent to 40 per cent of their original shareholdings, noted the Singtel and the CPF Board.
As such, the median shareholder today would have received about S$5,000 in cumulative dividends, more than covering the CPF savings used to buy the shares and the interest they would have otherwise received in their CPF ordinary accounts.
At Singtel’s share price of S$5.03 at 1.10pm on Apr 7, 1,360 shares would be worth about S$6,840.
SELLING SHARES
For those who choose to keep their shares, no action is required, said Singtel and CPF.
If the bill is passed,
Until Nov 21, individuals who choose to sell their shares can still retain the proceeds in their CPF ordinary accounts. After that, those who decide to sell their shares can receive the proceeds in cash.
Those who already sold their Singtel special discounted shares between Jan 1, 2025 and Apr 7, 2026 and had their sale proceeds credited to their CPF accounts can apply to withdraw their proceeds in cash.
The shares can be sold through Phillip Securities’ website, at SingPost branches, or through selected Singapore Exchange retail brokers.
Those who hold special discounted shares will receive a letter by mail from the CPF Board and Singtel by the end of April, which will contain information about their shares and the options available to them.
CPF Board and Singtel are also partnering with the Agency for Integrated Care to reach out to older and more vulnerable SDS holders who may not be as digitally savvy, they said.
This includes more than 20,000 individuals who have been identified as older SDS holders with lower CPF balances and who do not have CDP accounts.
Singtel is focused on preventing scams, said Mr Lang, stressing that CPF or Singtel employees will not ask for shareholders’ bank account details.
Continue reading...