Singapore’s listed real-estate trust framework, typically implemented as a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) under the Code on Collective Investment Schemes (Appendix 6), is structured to pool capital raised from unit holders through an Initial Public Offering (IPO) for the acquisition and holding of income-producing property portfolios.
Singapore’s listed REIT framework pools IPO capital from unit holders to acquire and hold diversified, income-producing property portfolios.
Properties are then leased to tenants, producing rental cash flow that is distributed to unit holders as periodic distributions analogous to dividends, while the underlying real estate is held on trust by an independent trustee on behalf of those unit holders.
For tax transparency as administered by IRAS, the vehicle must distribute at least 90% of taxable income each year, a threshold that shapes financing policy, payout expectations, and reporting cadence.
This architecture is frequently characterised as a modern wealth-transfer mechanism because beneficial interests are divided into tradeable units, yet the asset pool remains ring-fenced within a trust deed. These units can be bought and sold on an exchange through a broker, much like shares.
The trustee, receiving a fee for custody and compliance oversight, holds the assets under the deed, monitors legal observance, and protects unit holder rights, whereas the REIT manager executes the investment mandate, including property acquisitions and divestments.
In externally managed structures, remuneration commonly includes a “base fee”, a performance fee, and transaction-based acquisition or divestment fees, aligning governance with capital market discipline rather than direct property ownership.
Singapore’s wider trust law environment, governed by the Trustees Act (Cap 337) and, for collective investment trusts, regulated by MAS under the Securities and Futures Act, supplies the fiduciary baseline for such arrangements. Notably, there is no general registration requirement for private trusts under Singapore law.
Trustees must be Singapore-resident individuals or incorporated companies, are expected to act in beneficiaries’ best interests with prudent investment management, and may administer trusts for up to 100 years.
Trust deeds typically specify the title and parties, a declaration of trust evidencing the settlor’s asset transfer, powers and duties covering investment, selling, borrowing, reporting, and conflict avoidance, and distribution mechanics that can be discretionary or conditional.
Failure to meet the 90% distribution condition can void tax transparency, and conflicts may arise if fiduciary duties are breached, fees escalate, or a protector must intervene amid mismanagement. Beyond tax compliance, this distribution mandate offers portfolio diversification and liquidity benefits similar to those observed in equity REIT structures globally.
