Singapore's Central Bank Rolls Out Gold-Vaulting in Bid to Boost Hub's Appeal

By Fabiana Negrin Ochoa

Singapore's central bank is rolling out gold-vaulting services as part of efforts to make the city-state Asia's top gold-trading hub.

The service lets foreign central banks, international institution and sovereign entities hold gold reserves in the Southeast Asian country, alongside access to gold-market liquidity during Asian trading hours.

Gold will be stored in Singapore's national currency vault, which can hold up to 500 metric tons, with room for more as demand grows, the Monetary Authority of Singapore said Tuesday.

Despite volatility in gold prices this year, Singapore has been pushing to strengthen its gold-trading appeal, betting on healthy demand for the asset.

Hong Kong, too, has been taking steps to draw in more gold-trading flows.

In its 2026 policy address, the fellow regional financial hub said it would seize on the gold trading market's momentum to build out Hong Kong's own ecosystem.

Hong Kong plans to launch a central clearing and settlement system for gold in the first quarter of 2027, roll out more gold-linked financial products and set up a one-stop shop for mainland Chinese and overseas gold traders.

The MAS on Tuesday gave an update on Singapore's own over-the-counter gold-clearing system that six founding banks--including J.P. Morgan, Deutsche Bank and DBS--have been working on with the Singapore Exchange.

"Industry testing of the clearing system has been completed and the clearing system rulebook will be finalized soon," the central bank said. "Live trading and market operations are expected to commence in 1Q 2027."

In conjunction with the finance ministry, it will also introduce a tax framework to support wholesale investment precious metal activities, including extending a goods-and-services-tax waiver for services like vaulting.

Taken together, the initiatives put the building blocks in place for a more vibrant Singapore gold market, the MAS said.

The precious metal hasn't performed as well as one might expect during a year marked by uncertainty, as high interest rates and bond-market turbulence offset safe-haven flows. Still, demand among central banks looks intact.

A June survey by the World Gold Council showed that 89% of reserve managers expect global central banks to continue increasing gold holdings over the next 12 months.

The survey also highlighted that central banks are increasingly changing where their bullion is stored, with 10% of respondents saying they had diversified overseas storage locations.

"This pattern is set to continue, with 7% planning to increase domestic storage and 9% planning to diversify overseas locations in the coming year," the WGC said.

Write to Fabiana Negrin Ochoa at fabiana.negrinochoa@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

November 10, 2026 03:09 ET (08:09 GMT)