Industry body for remisiers marks 40 years amid Singapore equities rally

[SINGAPORE] Remisiers here are looking to rebound with “stronger networks and sharper skills” amid the popularity of fintech brokerages, said S Nallakaruppan, president of The Society of Remisiers (Singapore), or SRS. He was speaking at the industry body’s 40th-anniversary gala dinner on Friday (Mar 20).

“The way forward for remisiers to survive and thrive in this competitive environment is to move up the value chain and evolve from a purely transaction-based model to a value-added, fee-based model providing discretionary portfolio-managed services to clients,” he said.

Aptly, the theme for this year’s anniversary event was “regroup, reskill, rebound”.

He added that SRS is having “constructive discussions” with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Singapore Exchange (SGX) on this matter.

Remisiers are self-employed trading representatives who provide advice on stocks, and buy and sell shares on behalf of clients.

There are around 2,000 remisiers and dealers in Singapore, about 400 of whom are members of the professional body. Most remisiers are middle-aged, with two-thirds of SRS members already aged 60 or above.

Remisiers previously told The Business Times that they see the potential in playing a more active role in SGX’s retail investor engagement efforts, as well as the initiatives introduced by MAS’ equities market review group.

SRS’ 40th-anniversary event coincides with renewed momentum in the local equities market. In attendance were various industry leaders, including representatives from SGX, MAS and stockbroking houses.

“For four decades, the remisier community has played an important role in Singapore’s capital markets,” said Lim Tuang Lee, assistant managing director for capital markets at MAS, in a video marking the occasion.

He said remisiers “will continue to play important roles in the Singapore ecosystem” as they “work towards the next bound” for the Republic’s equities market.

The profession has been undergoing a period of transformation and potential rebranding. In September 2024, SRS and the Securities Association of Singapore launched the Remisier Development Programme (RDP), which comprises three training courses.

Nallakaruppan noted on Friday that there are now more than 500 remisiers taking part in these courses.

The growing participation underscores the expanding influence of remisiers in Singapore’s equities market – a view echoed by market and industry leaders at the event.

With the benchmark Straits Times Index recently surpassing the 5,000-point mark, SGX market strategist Geoff Howie noted that SRS has marked more than a year of the RDP by “reinforcing the vital role trading representatives play in driving market liquidity and investor trust”.

He added: “This commitment to a higher service charter ensures remisiers remain the bedrock of our equities market, effectively bridging sophisticated financial products with the evolving needs of the investing public.”

Ong Hwee Li, chief executive officer of investment banking firm SAC Capital, also said that “remisiers play an important role in the capital markets ecosystem, bridging real-time data and insights (for) investors”.

Dan Chang, a trading representative with PhillipCapital and an SRS executive committee member, told BT that the remisier profession has given him “not just a career, but (also) a community – one that has journeyed through different market cycles, challenges and transformations together”.

As part of the celebrations, SRS launched a commemorative book chronicling its journey since it was founded in 1986.

The 124-page hardcover volume also includes essays on the development of Singapore’s stock market from the 1960s to 2026, highlighting the growth of the remisier profession and its contributions to the financial sector.