The Monetary Authority of Singapore’s latest quarterly enforcement report details insider-trading charges over Sasseur REIT, civil penalties for trading on Alpha Energy and Tee International shares, and prohibition orders of up to 15 years against fraudsters.
The report, released on January 2, 2026 and covering the fourth quarter from October to December, shows MAS leveraging its joint investigative powers with the Commercial Affairs Department of the Singapore Police Force. The quarter opened with the charging of Xie Jianfeng on October 3 for insider trading and deception related to his trading of Sasseur Real Estate Investment Trust units. Xie, a former chief financial officer of a company related to the REIT’s manager, allegedly traded while in possession of non-public FY2020 financial results — the classic insider-trading pattern of a connected executive moving ahead of the market.
Two significant civil penalties for similar offences followed: S$137,000 levied against Ang Yew Jin Eugene on November 17 for insider trading in Alpha Energy Holdings, and S$50,000 against Tan Tee Beng on October 15 regarding shares in Tee International and Tee Land. Civil penalties allow the regulator to punish market misconduct without a criminal trial, and the naming of individuals serves as a public deterrent in a market where reputation is currency.
MAS also issued several long-term prohibition orders, effectively barring individuals from the financial services industry for periods ranging from three to 15 years. Charn Sze Choong received a 15-year order after being convicted of a S$1.9 million insurance fraud against Prudential. Tang Boon Hai was hit with a 10-year order after convictions for false trading and receiving stolen property. Benjamin Song Junde, involved in the insurance fraud scheme with Charn, received nine years. Marcus Tham and Charles Chong, former Great Eastern agents who failed “fit and proper” requirements, received three-year orders each.
The enforcement blitz underscores Singapore’s zero-tolerance posture toward financial misconduct, a stance that underpins the city-state’s status as a trusted financial hub. Insider trading strikes at the heart of market fairness: when executives trade on information the public cannot see, ordinary investors become the counterparties to a rigged game. The Sasseur REIT case is particularly sensitive because REITs are a retail-investor favourite in Singapore, held widely by mom-and-pop investors drawn to their dividends.
For the individuals named, the consequences extend well beyond fines and jail time. A prohibition order is a career death sentence in finance, publicly searchable and effectively permanent in its reputational damage. MAS’s practice of publishing detailed enforcement reports — names, amounts, reasons — is deliberate: in a small financial centre, sunlight is the regulator’s sharpest tool, and the quarterly report is its way of reminding the industry that it is watching.