Super-rich foreigners in Singapore are holding back on lavish spending, leading to a decrease in demand for luxury homes, cars, and other high-end goods, as the city-state intensifies its scrutiny of wealth.
Luxury condos in The Residences at W, one of the most coveted properties in the Sentosa Cove area of Singapore, saw their listed prices slashed by 40% in April from their initial launch in 2010, the South China Morning Post reported.
Sentosa Cove is a residential enclave in the eastern part of Sentosa Island that provides resort-living lifestyle aimed at
the ultra-rich.
Although the decline in prices has been partly linked to increased property taxes, it also reflects a wider trend of Singapore’s affluent foreign residents scaling back on lavish expenditures in response to intensified scrutiny of their financial assets.
Singapore uncovered a
historic laundering case last August, where a group of criminals from China laundered more than S$3 billion (US$2.2 billion) in proceeds from online gambling through at least 16 financial institutions in the city-state, according to The Straits Times.
In the aftermath of the incident, the city’s authorities have demanded more information from family offices and hedge funds, which are private entities that provide a comprehensive suite of services to high-net-worth families and individuals.
Just 32 new cars from six of Singapore’s top luxury brands were sold in the first quarter of 2024, a 74% decrease from a year ago.
Say Kwee Neng, managing partner at automotive consultancy One Strategic Consulting, told SCMP that new regulations stemming from the historic money-laundering case have required frontline sales staff to ask for additional information and validation for high-value purchases.
“With these stricter checks,
many prefer to avoid the hassle and forgo buying their dream car,” he said, adding that there has recently been a noticeable decline in showroom walk-ins and more customers turning down test drive invitations.
Source: Vnexpress
