Singapore’s looming debt wall fuels concern as Ezra stumbles

The Singapore exchange is relying increasingly on its derivatives revenue, which soared 42 percent in the year to end-June and accounted for 38 percent of total revenue

SINGAPORE: Default fears are resurfacing in Singapore ahead of a wall of maturing corporate debt, as a US bankruptcy filing of a firm from the city flags lingering pain despite economic recovery.

Pressure to pay down obligations has been unrelenting. Companies excluding banks in Singapore must repay S$38bil (RM120bil) of local bonds through the end of 2020, after four years through 2016 in which about the same amount fell due, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Six firms have defaulted on S$1.2bil worth of notes since November 2015.