Retail investors pour into Singapore stocks in 2025, with net inflow of $2.6b: SGX

SINGAPORE - Retail investors showed an appetite for Singapore stocks in 2025, accounting for $2.62 billion of net inflows, a five-year high.

Singapore Exchange (SGX) market strategist Geoff Howie said the amount marked the highest net retail inflows since 2020.

This also brings the net retail inflows for the past six years to $17 billion.

In the first half of 2025, retail investors recorded $2.2 billion in net retail inflows into Singapore stocks, and $413 million in the second half.

DBS was the largest recipient of net retail inflows, with nearly half of the full-year net inflows concentrated in the two weeks following Liberation Day –

the broad package of tariffs that US President Donald Trump announced on April 2, 2025.

SGX noted that the banks attracted a surge in net retail inflow during April’s volatility and steady inflow throughout the year, coinciding with the premium of their dividend yields over falling local interest rates.

Mr Howie said: “Coinciding with a decline in local interest rates, at a sector level, retail investors net bought banks, which also distributed capital return dividends, in addition to net buying real estate investment trusts.”

The three local banks – DBS, UOB and OCBC – topped the list of stocks with the highest inflows, followed by Mapletree Industrial Trust, CapitaLand Investment, Sembcorp, ComfortDelGro and Genting Singapore.

Among stocks on the Straits Times Index (STI), Mapletree Industrial Trust recorded the highest net retail inflow as a share of market cap for the year at 6.6 per cent.

Across the iEdge Next 50, which tracks the performance of the next 50 largest companies listed on the SGX mainboard after the STI’s component firms, data centre play NTT DC Reit registered net retail inflows amounting to 6.6 per cent of its market cap.

NTT DC Reit was the largest Reit listing on the SGX mainboard in 10 years and debuted on July 14.

It also saw some instances of range-bound trading in the second half of the year, which refers to a strategy used by traders when the prices of stocks move within a specific range.

When it came to exchange-traded funds (ETFs), the STI, Reit and Asia-Pacific financial-focused ETFs also accounted for six of the top 10 net purchased ETFs by retail investors.

However, SGX also noted in its market update that retail investors unwound $350 million of property giant CDL from April 10 to end-2025, reversing more than 18 months of earlier net buying that totalled $354 million.

CDL was embroiled in a saga in the first quarter of the year, when a boardroom battle for control emerged between Singapore’s billionaire property tycoon Kwek Leng Beng and his son Sherman Kwek.

The saga ended in March when the elder Mr Kwek dropped a lawsuit against his son.

In sum, excluding the banks on the STI, the rest of the Singapore stock market saw $1.26 billion in net retail outflows over 2025.

This comprised net outflow of $817 million in the first half of the year and $448 million in the second half.

This activity in the Singapore stock market was capped off by SGX Group reporting “stellar trading activity” in December, the bourse said on Jan 15.

It added that 2025 was a pivotal year that amplified the appeal and quality of the Singapore stock market.

Securities market turnover value climbed 29 per cent year on year in December to $25.8 billion.

The securities daily average value for 2025 gained 21 per cent to almost $1.5 billion, the highest since 2010.

Meanwhile, the STI marked a fresh record of 4,655.38 on Dec 30, underscoring momentum in a landmark year.

For 2025, the STI delivered 22.7 per cent, with reinvested dividends taking total returns to 28.8 per cent, outpacing most Asean peers.

For the iEdge Next 50 Indexes, total returns were also up 26.7 per cent in 2025.

Retail participation in cash equities grew to a four-year high, while institutions net purchased $415 million of small-cap and mid-cap stocks in 2025, SGX noted.

Efforts were made to boost the Singapore capital markets in 2025, with initiatives put in place such as the Equity Market Development Programme, which aimed to allocate $5 billion to selected fund managers to inject liquidity into the market.

Other measures also aimed to make it easier for companies to list and trade on the SGX.

As a result, the market saw capital raising accelerating.

In December, UltraGreen.ai Limited, a company in the fluorescence-guided surgery space, made its trading debut on the SGX mainboard.

The Catalist board also saw the listings of Infinity Development Holdings Company, a manufacturer of adhesive-related products for the footwear industry, and Leong Guan Holdings, a food manufacturing and distribution company.

In 2026, Mr Howie said SGX will continue carrying out measures that aim to energise the local marketplace for retail investors.

“Beyond encouraging value-unlocking initiatives by listed companies, we will broaden access to high-quality research, strengthen communication and engagement between investors and company management, and introduce new stocks and securities to diversify opportunities,” he said.

“While net inflows or outflows will ultimately depend on broader economic conditions, as seen in 2025, our unwavering focus is on expanding and deepening retail participation.”