Singapore, 1 February 2021... On 12 January 2021, the Commercial Affairs Department (CAD) of the Singapore Police Force and the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) launched a joint investigation into various companies under CoAssets Ltd (CoAssets Group Companies) for possible offences under the Penal Code (Cap. 224) and the Securities and Futures Act (Cap. 289) (SFA). The joint investigation stems from complaints and feedback received from members of the public regarding suspected misconduct by CoAssets Group Companies.   

2     Of the CoAssets Group Companies, only CA Funding Pte Ltd (CAFPL) is regulated by MAS, as a capital markets services licensee. In March 2020, MAS issued a direction to CAFPL to prohibit the company from listing new issuances, onboarding new investors and accepting subscription of securities. These directions were issued after MAS’ inspection uncovered lapses in CAFPL’s credit assessment process, inadequate disclosure of information to investors, and failure to address conflicts of interests arising from dealings that the CoAssets Group Companies had with entities related to issuers that CAFPL had listed on its platform. MAS also directed CAFPL to appoint an independent external auditor to review the effectiveness of its remedial measures to address these deficiencies.

3     CAFPL informed MAS in December 2020 that it had failed to comply with the minimum base capital requirement under the SFA and intended to cease operations. Pursuant to directions issued to CAFPL by MAS, all customers’ moneys held by CAFPL have since been returned to investors. MAS is closely monitoring CAFPL’s implementation of its cessation plan, to ensure that investors are treated fairly. 

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