Cost Structures of Investment Offerings in Singapore's Central Provident Fund

48 Pages Posted: 7 Jun 2007

See all articles by Benedict S. Koh

Benedict S. Koh

Singapore Management University - Lee Kong Chian School of Business

Olivia S. Mitchell

University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School; University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School, Pension Research Council; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Joelle H. Fong

National University of Singapore

Date Written: May 2007

Abstract

As policymakers seek to enhance the returns paid on participants' investments in their retirement systems, much attention has focused on the Singaporean Central Provident Fund (CPF) and how professionally-managed unit trusts permitted under the CPFIS scheme fit into the system. This paper begins by indicating the investment choices made available to participants; we also summarize the various transaction costs associated with unit trust investments. Next, we examine the determinants of these costs and investigate which factors have a bearing on the cost structure of unit trusts. Our empirical results show that foreign ownership, active style of management, and equity/balanced funds are associated with higher expenses. The paper concludes with a discussion of policy options to reduce cost associated with CPFIS included unit trusts.

Suggested Citation

Koh, Benedict S. and Mitchell, Olivia S. and Fong, Joelle H., Cost Structures of Investment Offerings in Singapore's Central Provident Fund (May 2007). Pension Research Council Paper No. WP2007-12, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=991652 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.991652

Benedict S. Koh (Contact Author)

Singapore Management University - Lee Kong Chian School of Business ( email )

469 Bukit Timah Road
Singapore 912409
Singapore

Olivia S. Mitchell

University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School ( email )

Philadelphia, PA 19104-6365
United States

University of Pennsylvania - The Wharton School, Pension Research Council ( email )

3302 Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall
3620 Locust Walk
Philadelphia, PA 19104-6302
United States

National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

1050 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02138
United States

Joelle H. Fong

National University of Singapore ( email )

469C BUKIT TIMAH ROAD, LKYSPP
SINGAPORE, Singapore 259771
Singapore

HOME PAGE: http://https://lkyspp.nus.edu.sg/our-people/faculty/fong-hung-yee-joelle

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