Global equities: What investors are missing about south-east Asian banks | Pendal Group
Hi there! Welcome to the new look Pendal website... Take a two minute tour to see what we’ve changed.

Mainstream Online Web Portal

Investors can view their accounts online via a secure web portal. After registering, you can access your account balances, periodical statements, tax statements, transaction histories and distribution statements / details.
Advisers will also have access to view their clients’ accounts online via the secure web portal.

Global equities: What investors are missing about south-east Asian banks

Global equities investors might be wary of US and European bank stocks right now. But don’t let that turn you off south-east Asian banks, says Pendal’s SAMIR MEHTA

INVESTORS may not have noticed the resilience of banks in southeast Asia amid a string of failures among their US and European counterparts, says Pendal’s Samir Mehta.

It’s due to a growing maturity of regulators and governments in the region says Mehta, who manages Pendal Asian Share Fund.

It wasn’t always that way.

Southeast Asia’s currencies, markets and banking systems were heavily impacted during the 1997 crisis as well as the GFC.

A dash to safety — the tendency for capital to be withdrawn in favour of safer investments — led to macroeconomic instability.

But this year’s slow-burn banking crisis in the West — which has seen the collapse of three US banks and the demise of Credit Suisse — has so far left Asia relatively unscathed, says Mehta.

What’s changed

“This is very different from the pre-1997 crisis in Asia when this region would typically be the worst hit from a macro instability during a dash to safety.

“What people are missing is the genuine change in the approach by central banks and governments in most parts of Asia to reign in indiscriminate borrowing resulting in unbridled speculation.

“Whether it’s Singapore, which is leading the way, Indonesia, Malaysia or to some extent even Thailand, regulators have really tightened down.”

Singapore

Mehta highlights Singapore’s lending and housing policies which have been significantly tightened in recent years to clamp down on speculation and prioritise housing for owner occupation.

Find out about

Pendal Asian Share Fund

The highest profile of these policies is the immense stamp duty faced by foreigners buying property or locals buying second properties.

Stamp duty of 20 per cent of applies to locals buying a second property, rising to 30 per cent for the third and subsequent properties.

But for foreigners buying any residential property, stamp duty is now a staggering 60 per cent of a property’s purchase price.

Singapore also charges sellers an additional stamp duty if they sell a property within three years of buying.

“Now, all of this is draconian,” says Mehta.

“Regulators have made it so difficult so that the only those who have savings for their equity contribution, the ability to repay, are willing to pay additional taxes and importantly will hold the property for the long run can buy property.

Mindset change

“This is reflective of a mindset change that central banks in this part of the world incorporated from the lessons of the past.

“That is why it is now such a different regulatory regime in this part of the world.”

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) — the island state’s central bank and financial regulatory authority — has also directly regulated leverage available to borrowers, cracking down on banks’ ability to make risky loans.

“Human nature is such that if I work for a bank, profits I make are shared to me as a bonus but losses I make are borne by shareholders — it’s a disproportionate risk reward situation,” says Mehta.

“We have seen it time and time again. Banking crises are almost always driven by significant increase in leverage because the payouts from leveraged speculation are disproportionate for the person who takes the risk.

“This is a lesson that central banks in this part of the world — particularly the MAS — have learned.

What the MAS does is something the Federal Reserve and Western banks have rarely done — directly tweak margin requirements and loan to value ratios.”

This control over the lending market curbs banks’ ability to make excess profits but also dramatically reduces the chance of a bank failure.

“If and when there is a crisis, the probability of Singapore banks being badly affected has come down sharply,” says Mehta.

“So, among all the universe of banks out there, as an investor I want to find those banks in a regulatory environment where I won’t lose my shirt.”

The security provided by tight regulation also plays into why the Singapore dollar remains so stable and why Singapore is attracting so much foreign capital, says Mehta.

“That’s a virtuous cycle — these actions demonstrate the willingness of the central bank to take draconian measures to provide stability and that stability which by definition then encourages more people to invest capital in this region because they know it enhances stability.”


About Samir Mehta and Pendal Asian Share Fund

Samir manages Pendal Asian Share Fund, an actively managed portfolio of Asian shares excluding Japan and Australia. Samir is a senior fund manager at UK-based J O Hambro, which is part of Pendal Group.

Pendal Asian Share Fund aims to provide a return (before fees, costs and taxes) that exceeds the MSCI AC Asia ex Japan (Standard) Index (Net Dividends) in AUD over the medium-to-long term.

Pendal is a global investment management business focused on delivering superior investment returns for our clients through active management. 

Contact a Pendal key account manager here


This information has been prepared by Pendal Fund Services Limited (PFSL) ABN 13 161 249 332, AFSL No 431426 and is current at May 10, 2023. PFSL is the responsible entity and issuer of units in the Pendal Midcap Fund (Fund) ARSN: 130 466 581. A product disclosure statement (PDS) is available for the Fund and can be obtained by calling 1300 346 821 or visiting www.pendalgroup.com. The Target Market Determination (TMD) for the Fund is available at www.pendalgroup.com/ddo. You should obtain and consider the PDS and the TMD before deciding whether to acquire, continue to hold or dispose of units in the Fund. An investment in the Fund or any of the funds referred to in this web page is subject to investment risk, including possible delays in repayment of withdrawal proceeds and loss of income and principal invested. This information is for general purposes only, should not be considered as a comprehensive statement on any matter and should not be relied upon as such. It has been prepared without taking into account any recipient’s personal objectives, financial situation or needs. Because of this, recipients should, before acting on this information, consider its appropriateness having regard to their individual objectives, financial situation and needs. This information is not to be regarded as a securities recommendation. The information may contain material provided by third parties, is given in good faith and has been derived from sources believed to be accurate as at its issue date. While such material is published with necessary permission, and while all reasonable care has been taken to ensure that the information is complete and correct, to the maximum extent permitted by law neither PFSL nor any company in the Pendal group accepts any responsibility or liability for the accuracy or completeness of this information. Performance figures are calculated in accordance with the Financial Services Council (FSC) standards. Performance data (post-fee) assumes reinvestment of distributions and is calculated using exit prices, net of management costs. Performance data (pre-fee) is calculated by adding back management costs to the post-fee performance. Past performance is not a reliable indicator of future performance. Any projections are predictive only and should not be relied upon when making an investment decision or recommendation. Whilst we have used every effort to ensure that the assumptions on which the projections are based are reasonable, the projections may be based on incorrect assumptions or may not take into account known or unknown risks and uncertainties. The actual results may differ materially from these projections. For more information, please call Customer Relations on 1300 346 821 8am to 6pm (Sydney time) or visit our website www.pendalgroup.com

Keep updated
Sign up to receive the latest news and views