25. Securities and Financial Services Regulation

Abstract

There were fewer cases in 2016 (as compared to 2015) which involved securities regulation broadly understood. The area not being clearly defined can be seen in the fact that it only came about when Prof Louis Loss put together the first book on the area (which he first termed) in 1951, drawing strands from disparate areas of finance law. In Singapore, this is also attested to by the fact that the most important case discussed here is that of 'Vintage Bullion DMCC v Chan Fook Yuen', which was about whether certain financial assets were held by a financial institution on trust for its investors or fell for distribution to its unsecured investors. Yet, it falls within the rubric of the regulation of securities market intermediaries. As securities regulation also covers areas where private ordering interacts with formal regulation, there is also some discussion at the end of this review of both contractual arrangements made in the shadow of listing and business rules.