(SINGAPORE, 26.11.2025) In a relatively low-key event held in a quiet corner of Singapore, Lion Global Investors (LGI), part of the OCBC Group, yesterday launched a new fund — the Lion Global Singapore Physical Gold Fund. This marks the country’s first unit-trust-style fund backed by gold held in local vaults, not abroad, which is insured in both storage and transit by Standard Chartered Bank.
With this launch, Singapore begins a new chapter of securing its gold on home soil and positioning itself to build greater wealth as an emerging gold hub.
In his opening address to the small gathering, Tan Joo Wah, CEO of LGI, noted that investing in a gold fund usually means simply tracking price movements, with little regard for where the bullion is kept. What distinguishes the Singapore Physical Gold Fund, he stressed, is that its gold is physically stored and securely held in custody right here in Singapore.
Amid rising global and geopolitical uncertainties, Mr. Tan urged investors to closely assess where their gold is stored. He recommended choosing gold held in politically neutral, well-regulated Singapore, which is widely regarded as a secure and trustworthy jurisdiction.
He also encouraged Singaporeans to invest in the local gold fund, noting that onshore management and storage create jobs and strengthen the domestic economy, while buying gold from overseas sends those benefits abroad.
MariBank is one of the fund’s retail distributors, alongside OCBC, Great Eastern, and Singlife Group. Introducing Mari Invest Gold, Huo Haiyan, head of the bank’s consumer business, said the product is designed to make gold investment accessible to all. “Customers can begin with as little as S$1. This removes traditional barriers and democratizes opportunities in gold investment,” she pointed out.
Francois Verlaine, Standard Chartered’s regional head of financing and securities services for Asean and South Asia, described the bank’s custodian role in the fund, outlining that it safeguards physical gold in secure, segregated accounts with full transparency and traceability.
“Our rigorous anti-money-laundering and know-your-customer processes, backed by our expertise in MAS regulations, ensure we operate at the highest standards. In custody, trust is everything,” Mr. Verlaine stressed.
Highlighting the event’s rigorous security measures, Mr. Verlaine compared it to the level of protection found in the state-of-the-art gold vaults— in fact even surpassed by them—designed according to the highest international standards.
“This fund launch is not just an investment product. It’s a strategic building block in Singapore’s emergence as a pre-eminent gold trading and storage hub,” he concluded.
“Our gold is fully insured against loss, damage, theft while in custody and transit. This is unlike many other gold funds, for example SPDR Gold Shares, whose gold is custodized in the UK or the US,” Kwok Keng Han, Chief Marketing Officer of LGI, told Fortune Times.
The gold underlying the SPDR is physically held in vaults under the supervision of custodians, such as HSBC Bank. While the custodians may carry insurance, this coverage may not extend to the full value of all gold held for the Trust. Neither the Trust nor its shareholders are entitled to any benefits from that insurance.
Mr. Kwok also urged investors to buy gold through the LGI gold fund, noting that it helps avoid the inconvenience of queueing at banks or bullion dealers. It also removes the hefty upfront cost of purchasing an entire bar, since Maribank allows gold to be bought in increments as small as one Singapore dollar.
Mr. Kwok also clarified that starting 1st December, investors holding an account with any of the group’s relevant distributors will be able to buy and sell units of the fund.
Concerning the authenticity of the gold, Mr. Kwok revealed that it is procured through Standard Chartered Bank and adheres to the standards established by the London Bullion Market Association (LBMA), the global benchmark for the metal.
“Singapore was chosen likely also because of its proximity to certain gold mining resources. In fact, Singapore is near to about 25% of the world’s gold mining supply,” added Mr Kwok.
