1. MAS Financial Business Types and CMS License Regulated Activities
BUT 11 Major financial business license categories
The 11 financial business license categories listed by MAS include：commercial bank、merchant bank、finance company、Insurance、Securities Futures and Fund Management(CMS)、financial advisor、currency broker、Currency exchange and remittance、business trust、trust company、Payment and Settlement System。
CMS license (Capital Market Services License)
CMS (Capital Markets Services Licensee) is a financial regulatory license granted by MAS。Applicants can choose one or more of the businesses，However, corresponding regulatory requirements must be met。
What is covered by the CMS license 7 core business
There are 7 types of businesses that can be carried out after the CMS license is approved，respectively：Securities trading、corporate financial advisor、Fund management、Securities Financing、Providing securities custody services、Real Estate Investment Trust Management、credit rating services。
Fund management company (FMC)
Companies whose main business activity is money management activities are called FMCs。Engage in money management activities in Singapore，Either hold a CMS fund management license (LFMC/VCFM)，Either apply to MAS for registration as an RFMC。
2. Core [Statutory Conditions] and Considerations for Applying for a CMS License
Market reputation and experience：Applicant companies must have a good market reputation，and have conducted relevant business in Singapore’s capital markets or related fields for at least the past five years.。
Home Country Strength and Compliance：Applicant company and its subsidiaries，Or the affiliated company has better strength in its home country；And the applicant company must strictly comply with the regulations of its home country。
Local Entity and Executive Requirements：Must have a physical office in Singapore。The board of directors must have at least 2 people or more，At least one of them is resident in Singapore；CEO must be resident in Singapore。
Bottom line of group shareholders’ funds：Institutions that apply to carry out securities trading or futures contract trading，Minimum group shareholder funds are S$200 million and S$100 million respectively。
MAS Core Assessment Factors：1) applicant、Suitability of shareholders and directors；2) Track record and expertise；3) Minimum financial requirements set by the SFA；4) Internal risk management and compliance systems；5) Business model/plan forecasts and related risks。
3. Singapore Fund Management Company (LFMC/RFMC/VCFM) Financial and personnel statutory requirements
| FMC License Type | Original statutory details and requirements (finance、personnel、Compliance) |
|---|---|
| Open recruitment LFMC (Retail LFMC) | For any type of investor。Minimum base capital of S$500,000-S$1 million。At least 2 directors with 5 years of experience，One of them is CEO(At least 10 years experience)，The other person is an executive director(Must be a Singapore resident，Full-time responsible for operations)。At least 3 full-time Singapore employees(5years of experience)。An independent and dedicated compliance department must be established in Singapore。 |
| Qualified Investor LFMC (A/I LFMC) | Qualified investors only。Minimum base capital of S$250,000。CEO and Executive Director with more than 5 years of experience(Executive directors must be Singapore residents)。At least 2 full-time Singapore employees(5years of experience)。If the total asset management scale reaches S$1 billion, an independent and dedicated compliance department will be required to be established in Singapore.。 |
| Venture Capital Fund Manager (VCFM) | No minimum base capital requirement。Not subject to commercial conduct。At least 80% of the committed capital needs to be invested in unlisted companies that have been registered for no more than 10 years，The proportion of remaining products that do not meet the conditions does not exceed 20%。Not continuously issued and non-redeemable。 |
| Registered fund manager (RFMC) | Minimum base capital of S$250,000。Services may only be provided to no more than 30 qualified investors (no more than 15 of which may be funds or limited partnerships)，And total assets under management (AUM) cannot exceed S$250 million。 |
| Common Financial and Compliance Bottom Line | Financial resources are at least as high as operational risk requirements 120%。Comply with anti-money laundering requirements，Submit unaudited reports quarterly，Submit an audited report every year (submit within 5 months)。 |
4. [Statutory application process] and review timeline for obtaining a CMS license
step 1：Prepare statutory application forms and documents
Prepare company registration documents、business plan、Equity structure chart、organizational chart。To apply for LFMC you need to complete Form 1A；To apply for VCFM you need to complete Form 1V；To apply for RFMC to start business, you need to submit Form 22A。
step 2：Pay the non-refundable application fee
When submitting Form 1A or Form 1V，Need to pay 1,000 Singapore currency application fee，Non-refundable。If an existing LFMC applies to carry out additional regulated activities，Form is required 5 Submit to MAS，and pay via GIRO 500 Non-refundable application fee in Singapore dollars。
step 3：appoint a representative (Representative)
If the administrator employs an individual to carry out activities regulated under the license，Must be appointed as representative。LFMC is required to submit an appointment form (Form 3A) for the representative；VCFM needs to identify representatives but does not need to submit a separate form；RFMC is indicated on Form 22A。
step 4：MAS review cycle
MAS estimated review time：LFMC and RFMC require up to 6 months；VCFM requires up to 4 months。If the business model is complex or the initial submission information is incomplete，The review period will be longer；If significant changes are made after the initial application，MAS may require resubmission。
step 5：Letter of approval in principle (IPA) and licensing
After successful review，Applicants will receive an in-principle approval letter (IPA)。The applicant has up to 6 months to satisfy IPA requirements (such as providing a commitment、Replenish share capital or formally appoint key personnel)。After meeting the requirements, the license will be officially issued.。
5. License [Annual Fee] and Singapore Fund Tax Benefits
Company license annual fee：Retail LFMC / A/I LFMC Fixed Fee 4,000 new currency。
Representative annual fee：LFMC From January 1 of the calendar year，From the first 101 Representatives start，per representative 5 Calculate variable fees in Singapore dollars。
Fund management company tax (FSI-FM)：Corporate income tax rate 17%。If approved "Financial Sector Incentive-Fund Management Incentive"，can enjoy 10% preferential tax rate。standard：Hold an asset management license、Hire at least 3 professionals(Monthly salary>3500 SGD)、Assets under management exceed SGD 250 million。
Fund entity tax policy：Funds managed by Singapore Fund Management Company，You can apply for three different tax exemption schemes (such as 13O / 13U），Enjoy tax-free treatment of designated investment income。
6. Legal consequences after the license registration expires or the license expires
No business allowed：Fund managers will be prohibited from all regulated activities within the scope of the CMS license，and the license will be canceled by MAS，or cease doing business as RFMC。
Terminate registration according to law：According to Section 1 of the Securities and Futures Act (SFA) 95 strip，License expired，The Securities and Futures (Licensing and Conduct of Business) Regulations 5(2)(bb) segment termination registration。
List removal：All entities registered for a fund management license or holding a CMS license to carry out regulated fund management activities are listed on the Directory of Financial Institutions。Correspondingly，All fund managers who are no longer registered or no longer hold a license will be removed from the list of financial institutions。
7. Hong Kong Huitong’s one-stop licensing and compliance services
CMS license full case agency
Handle the entire process from local company registration to submission of Form 1A/1V to MAS。Write a business plan、Risk Management Framework and AML Regime，Agents should undergo strict background checks and inquiries by MAS。
Internal compliance and audit arrangements
Assist in establishing a framework consistent with the Risk Management Practice Guidelines，Arrange quarterly unaudited reports、annual audit report，and ensuring financial resources meet operational risk needs 120% bottom line requirements。
Tax Planning and FSI-FM Application
Tailor-made fund tax planning。Assist in applying to MAS for "Financial Sector Incentives - Fund Management Incentives" and the tax exemption scheme for fund entities，Ensure that investment income legally enjoys tax exemptions。
8. Singapore CMS License and Fund Management Core Questions and Answers (FAQ)
The Capital Market Services License (CMS) is a financial regulatory license granted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS)。After obtaining a CMS license, you can engage in 7 statutory activities including fund management regulated by MAS.。
There are 7 types of businesses that can be carried out after approval，respectively：Securities trading、corporate financial advisor、Fund management、Securities Financing、Providing securities custody services、Real Estate Investment Trust Management、credit rating services。Applicants can choose one or more of the businesses。
Applicant companies must have a good market reputation，and have conducted relevant business in Singapore’s capital markets or related fields for at least the past five years.。Institutions that apply to carry out securities trading or futures contract trading，Minimum group shareholder funds are S$200 million and S$100 million respectively。
To apply for the company's board of directors, you must have at least 2 people or more，Among them there are at least 1 resident in singapore；at the same time，The CEO of the applicant company must be resident in Singapore。The applicant company must establish a physical office in Singapore。
Mainly divided into two categories：Registered Fund Management Company (RFMC) and Licensed Fund Management Company (LFMC)。Among them, LFMC is subdivided into Retail LFMC (retail retail investors)、A/I LFMC (Qualified Investor) and Venture Capital Fund Manager (VCFM)。
Retail LFMC is able to provide fund management services to any type of investor, including retail investors。Extremely demanding：At least 2 directors with 5 years of experience (CEO with at least 10 years of experience)，At least 3 full-time Singapore employees，Minimum capital of S$500,000，and must establish an independent and dedicated compliance department。
A/I LFMC can only provide fund management services to qualified investors，But there is no limit on the number of investors。Require：Minimum registered capital: S$250,000，At least 2 full-time Singapore employees (5 years of experience)。If the asset management scale reaches S$1 billion，An independent compliance department needs to be established。
At least 80% of the committed capital needs to be invested until registration takes no longer than 10 Products issued by unlisted companies in 2016；The investment proportion of products that do not meet the conditions shall not exceed 20%；No continued issuance，and cannot be redeemed；Only available to qualified or institutional investors。
RFMC does not need to hold a CMS license to carry out fund management activities，But subject to strict scale restrictions：Services may only be provided to no more than 30 qualified investors (no more than 15 of which may be funds or limited partnerships)，And the total assets under management cannot exceed S$250 million。
Main considerations：1) applicant、The fitness and propriety of its shareholders and directors；2) Track record and fund management expertise；3) Meet the minimum financial requirements set by the SFA；4) Strong internal risk management and compliance system；5) Business model/plan forecasts and associated risks。
To apply for LFMC you need to complete Form 1A；To apply for VCFM you need to complete Form 1V。No matter which，The application fee is 1,000 new currency，and non-refundable。If an existing LFMC applies for additional regulated activities，Form needs to be submitted 5 and pay 500 Shingen。
MAS estimated review time：Applications for LFMC and RFMC require a maximum 6 months；VCFM application requires at most 4 months。If the applicant does not fully meet the criteria、The business model is complex，or the initial submission information is incomplete，The review period will be longer。
At the end of the review process，MAS will issue an in-principle approval letter to successful applicants (IPA)。The applicant has up to 6 months to satisfy the requirements of the IPA (usually involving a commitment to provide、Replenish share capital or appoint key personnel)。Only after satisfaction can the license be officially issued。
The fixed charges for Retail LFMC and A/I LFMC are 4,000 new currency。also，From January 1 of the calendar year，From the first 101 Representatives start，It is also necessary to press each representative 5 Calculation of variable fees in Singapore dollars to be paid to regulators。
Regular corporate income tax rate is 17%。But if the fund manager is approved to receive the "Financial Sector Incentive-Fund Management Incentive Payment"(FSI-FM)”，You can enjoy a preferential tax rate of 10%。Standards include：hold a license、Hire at least 3 professionals(Monthly salary above SGD 3,500)，And the amount of assets under management exceeds S$250 million。
