Page 14 - Singapore

S'pore to recognise Palestine in principle at appropriate time: Foreign min

Singapore is prepared in principle to recognise Palestine as a state and will make this move at an appropriate time, Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said in Parliament on Tuesday, emphasising that the country has advocated a negotiated two-state solution, consistent with the relevant UN Security Council resolutions to achieve lasting peace. In particular, there needs to be an effective Palestinian government that accepts Israel's right to exist and categorically rejects terrorism, Dr Balakrishnan said. Both sides have legitimate rights, and both peoples have a right to live in peace and dignity within secure borders, The Straits Times quoted the Singapore minister as saying. He was responding to questions from parliamentarians on Singapore's May 10 decision to vote for a United Nations resolution backing the admission of Palestine as a member of the world body, which it said was made after serious and careful consideration. Dr Balakrishnan urged both sides to seize the moment

Gukesh vs Liren: Singapore wins bid for 2024 FIDE World Championships match

Singapore will host the 2024 World Championship match between India's chess sensation D Gukesh and defending champion Ding Liren from China, FIDE announced on Monday The development means that Gukesh won't compete on home turf as neither Delhi nor Chennai could secure the hosting rights for the much-anticipated event which will be held between November 20 and December 15. "The Singapore Chess Federation, supported by the Government of Singapore, has won the bid to host the FIDE World Championship Match 2024," FIDE said in a release. "After reviewing the bids and inspecting all potential host cities for their venues, amenities, event programs, and opportunities, the International Chess Federation has selected Singapore as the host of the World Championship Match," FIDE added in the release.

Singapore gets tough on casinos in new measures to check terrorism funding

Casinos in Singapore will soon face tighter rules on conducting due diligence checks when receiving cash as part of updated measures to counter terrorism financing, the country's gambling regulatory body said on Monday. Due diligence checks will have to be carried out when casinos receive a cash deposit of SGD 4,000 (USD 2,950) or more into a customer's account - down from the current threshold of SGD 5,000. The new threshold for due diligence checks was among the measures laid out in Singapore's updated National Strategy for Countering the Financing of Terrorism, jointly published on Monday by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the Ministry of Finance (MOF) and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). "The adjustment is made so that Singapore casinos can better combat money laundering and terrorism financing and align our requirements with FATF standards," the Gambling Regulatory Authority (GRA) said. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is a global money laundering and ...

China's AI startups head to Singapore in pursuit of global growth

AI entrepreneurs in particular are accelerating the shift because trade sanctions imposed by the US on their homeland block their access to the newest technologies

Nazara subsidiary to fully acquire Freaks 4U Gaming in deal worth Rs 271 cr

E-sports and gaming company NODWIN will enhance its stake to 100 per cent in its European peer Freaks 4U in a share swap deal valued at around Rs 271 crore, the company said on Friday. Singapore-based NODWIN is a material subsidiary of Nazara Technologies, a company headquartered in Mumbai. "NODWIN Gaming International Pte has signed definitive agreements to increase its existing 13.51 per cent stake in Freaks 4U Gaming GmbH to 100 per cent in tranches through a share swap valued at up to Rs 271 crore (Euro 30.3 million)," the company said in a statement. NODWIN will initially increase its existing stake in Freaks 4U to 57 per cent. "The remaining 43 per cent held by the founders Michael Haenisch, Matthias Remmert and Jens Enders will be swapped at a later time at its option. Existing investors of Freaks 4U Gaming will become shareholders of NODWIN Pte," the statement said. Freaks 4U generated Rs 223 crore (Euro 26.9 million) revenue in 2023. NODWIN acquired a minority stake in F

Congestion at Singapore port shows global ripple impact of Red Sea attacks

Retailers, manufacturers and other industries that rely on massive box ships are again battling surging rates, port backups and shortages of empty containers

Determined to respond to financial crime risks: Singapore PM Wong

Singapore published a national asset recovery strategy report as part of its efforts to enhance its anti-money laundering

Singapore costliest city for luxury spending, Hong Kong, London follow

Singapore has continued to attract the ultra-wealthy by maintaining its reputation for political and economic stability

Singapore rushes to clean-up oil slick after boat hits stationary fuel ship

An oil spill caused by a dredger boat hitting a stationary cargo tanker has blackened part of Singapore's southern coastline, including the popular resort island of Sentosa, and sparked concerns it may threaten marine wildlife as a clean-up operation was underway Sunday. The Netherlands-flagged dredger Vox Maxima struck the Singaporean fuel supply ship Marine Honor on Friday. It damaged the cargo tank on Marine Honor, which leaked oil into the sea. Singapore's Maritime and Port Authority said in a statement late Saturday the oil leak from the vessel had been contained, and that the oil that escaped from the damaged tanker had been treated with dispersants. But due to the tidal current, it said the treated oil had landed along shorelines including at Sentosa and other southern islands, a nature reserve and a public beach park. Sentosa, which attracts millions of visitors annually, houses one of Singapore's two casinos, golf courses and Southeast Asia's only Universal Studios theme ..

Beaches on Singapore's resort island of Sentosa closed after oil spill

Tanjong Beach Club, which is normally bustling with guests on weekends, was largely empty. Scattered tables with a handful of diners looked over the shoreline

Indian techie jailed in Singapore for hacking ex-employer's server

Kandula Nagaraju, a former employee of NCS, was found guilty of executing a cyber-attack on the company's quality assurance system after being fired

Super-wealthy may quit UK over Labour plans for inheritance taxes on trusts

Economists say overall tax levels are likely to approach an all-time high whoever wins the election, despite promises by both main parties not to increase major tax rates

India to clock highest growth in tech spending in 2024 in APAC: Report

Tech economy 'enjoys strong growth' due to digitisation push by central and state governments, it says

Indian gets 2-yr jail term for hacking ex-employer's system in Singapore

An Indian national was sentenced to two years and six months' jail term here for a charge of unauthorised access to computer material during which he deleted 180 virtual servers, costing his employer about SGD 918,000 (USD678,000). The sentence was pronounced on Monday. Another charge was taken into consideration for sentencing Kandula Nagaraju, 39, who was "upset" that he was fired by NCS in October 2022 due to poor work performance and his employment ended on November 16, 2022. Between November 2021 and October 2022, Kandula was part of a 20-member team managing the quality assurance (QA) computer system at NCS, a company that offers information communication and technology services. The system that Kandula's former team was managing was used to test new software and programs before launch. It consisted of about 180 virtual servers, and no sensitive information was stored on them. According to court documents, Kandula felt "confused and upset" when he was fired as he felt he had

Singapore authorities ramp up scrutiny of family offices, hedge funds

The government's push to tighten various investment regimes has accelerated since March, with agencies setting out additional requirements that must be met in the coming months

'India a big market; good to have stronger Lufthansa-Air India partnership'

India is a big aviation market and a stronger partnership between Air India and Lufthansa is good, as efforts of the Star Alliance are to bring the partners together to provide a unique value proposition for the passengers, the airline grouping's CEO Theo Panagiotoulias has said. Air India and Lufthansa are part of the Star Alliance, whose 26 member airlines come together at more than 50 global hubs to offer smooth connections across a global network. A management company, based in Frankfurt and Singapore, coordinates Star Alliance projects and activities. It includes airport co-location, digital infrastructure, frequent flyer integration and joint business lounge projects to improve the travel experience. Talking to PTI on the sidelines of IATA annual general meeting in Dubai this week, Panagiotoulias was bullish about the prospects in the Indian market that offers "so much of opportunities". "The alliance is to bring the partners together to provide a unique value proposition...

Surge in aerophobia treatment in Singapore after severe turbulence on SQ321

More people in Singapore are seeking treatment for aerophobia -- the fear of flying -- following the severe turbulence incident that struck a Singapore Airlines flight over the Irrawaddy Basin in Myanmar last month. Aerophobia can range from slight uneasiness to very severe panic attacks triggered by a thought or impending occasion of flying, according to a Channel News Asia report on Friday. While aviation experts say that flying remains among the safest forms of travel, some service providers have seen a spike in people seeking to address this fear, according to the report. On May 21, SQ321, en route from London to Singapore, encountered extreme turbulence. The Boeing 777-300ER aircraft was carrying 211 passengers and a crew of 18 when it made an emergency landing at Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport. One passenger a 73-year-old British man died and dozens were injured, some of them seriously. Some SQ321 passengers painted a harrowing scene in an interview with the channel. Thos

Over $23 bn of sustainable infra projects identified at IPEF eco forum meet

As many as 69 sustainable infrastructure projects worth over USD 23 billion of investment opportunities were identified at the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) clean economy investor forum meet in Singapore, according to a statement. The statement of Singapore's ministry of trade and economy, which hosted the meet, out of the 69 projects, 20 investment-ready projects worth about USD 6 billion were presented to investors at business matching sessions. Remaining projects worth about USD 17 billion were also identified as potential investment opportunities in future. The forum brought together about 300 participants from the Indo-Pacific region's top investors, cutting-edge project proponents, innovative start-up entrepreneurs, ministers and senior government officials. The Indian delegation was led by Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal. Organised by Singapore's ministry alongside the 13 other IPEF partners, the forum aims to facilitate high-quality business and .

World leaders congratulate Modi ahead of third term as Prime Minister

Over 50 world leaders have congratulated Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he is set to take oath this week for a third straight term at the top office following the National Democratic Alliance's victory in the Lok Sabha polls. From India's neighbourhood and extended neighbourhood, presidents of Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Iran, Seychelles and prime ministers of Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Myanmar, Mauritius have sent congratulatory greetings to Modi. In a post on X, Singapore's Prime Minister Lawrence Wong described the victory of the NDA alliance as "historic" and said he was looking forward to working with his Indian counterpart to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties between the two nations next year. "Congratulations @narendramodi on the historic victory by the NDA for the third consecutive term. Look forward to working with you to deepen the Singapore-India partnership and to celebrate the 60th anniversary of diplomatic ties next year," Wong said on X. Among G20 ...

IPEF's clean economy investor forum meet in Singapore to begin on Jun 5

Senior officials from the commerce ministry will participate in the two-day clean economy investor forum meet in Singapore, organised by Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), an official said. Commerce Secretary Sunil Barthwal, Additional Secretary in the ministry Rajesh Agrawal, and other senior officers have reached Singapore for the meet, which will start on June 5. "Indian projects would be pitched in the forum. Over 150 investors would participate," the official said. The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) was launched in May 2022 and it currently includes 14 partners -- Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the US, and Vietnam. It provides a platform for countries in the region to collaborate on advancing resilient, sustainable and inclusive economic growth, and aims to contribute to cooperation, stability and prosperity in the region. Th