I received a "know your customer" e-mail from the Singapore Exchange's (SGX) market services department.

I was stunned by the information that was demanded: my investment portfolio report, my inheritance (Grant of Probate with schedule of assets), my rental receipt (tenancy agreement), my business wealth, sale of my property (sale and purchase agreement), and so on.

It was a demand because the e-mail ended with a threat that I risked having my Central Depository (CDP) account suspended if I did not provide the information.

It has gone far beyond the idea of knowing your customer, in which financial institutions generally ask for updates on contact information and for some information on basic personal finances such as salary.

What does the market services department of SGX intend to do with all this highly personal information and what has it got to do with a person's CDP account?

SGX is a commercial entity. Will its market services department commercialise all this private information it is gathering?

More importantly, how does SGX's action square with the privacy laws of Singapore?

Lim Chiew Sen