Corruption cases in S’pore fell to lowest level in 2025; CPIB observes cases becoming more complex

SINGAPORE - The number of corruption cases reported and investigated in Singapore hit an all-time low in 2025, with most cases involving the private sector.

Releasing its annual statistics on April 28, the Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau (CPIB) said there were 68 cases registered for investigation in 2025, down from 75 in 2024 and 81 cases the previous year.

CPIB said a report is registered for investigation if the information received is pursuable. This is determined by the quality of relevant information provided in the report.

It singled out the construction, manufacturing, and transportation and storage sectors as the industries most vulnerable to corruption, after looking at cases of convicted private sector employees over the past 10 years.

CPIB said it had conducted a probe into one case in the public sector, involving a former driving tester who, in May 2025, allegedly attempted to obtain $150 from a test candidate at Bukit Batok Driving Centre, in exchange for leniency during his test.

Another 22 of the 68 cases registered for investigation in 2025 involved public service officers rejecting bribes.

These officers were from the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority, Land Transport Authority, National Environment Agency, Singapore Police Force and Certis Cisco Aviation Security.

CPIB said the conviction rate in 2025 stood at 100 per cent, but fell to 91 per cent after accounting for cases that had been withdrawn after the individual or entity was charged in court. Cases can be withdrawn in some instances, such as on compassionate grounds, or when the individual absconds before his conviction.

The convictions included that of a former assistant superintendent of police who was attached to the Secret Societies Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID).

Koh Kian Tiong, 52, had obtained $15,000 from a gambling boss he had become acquainted with in 2005. He used the sum to pay legal bills he had acquired during his divorce. He also took another $25,500 to clear his credit card bills, pay for air tickets and hotel room charges in Shanghai, and $6,000 for unspecified reasons.

In exchange, the former officer provided information about CID operations to the gambling syndicate. Koh was caught in China and repatriated to Singapore in April 2024. He was sentenced to nine years’ jail in May 2025 after being on the run for nearly 17 years.

Meanwhile, 90 people were prosecuted in 2025 for offences investigated by CPIB, of whom 84 were from the private sector.

In total, the agency received 160 corruption-related reports in 2025, of which 56 were made anonymously. This is down from the 177 reports it received in 2024, and 215 in 2023.

The agency noted that some corruption cases were getting more complex, adding that it had observed cases involving cross-border activity and the use of emerging technologies to layer transactions with digital currencies.

“CPIB will continue to take effective enforcement action against corrupt offenders and deepen partnerships with stakeholders and the community to keep our home free from corruption,” said the agency.

Public perception

A CPIB-commissioned annual survey showed that 98 per cent of respondents had rated the corruption situation in Singapore as good, very good or excellent. Respondents had highlighted the political will to keep corruption under control, a zero-tolerance culture for graft and effective anti-corruption laws as the top factors contributing to low corruption in Singapore.

Some 97 per cent of respondents had agreed or strongly agreed that they can trust CPIB to keep Singapore corruption-free, up from 86 per cent in 2024.

The bulk of respondents – 97 per cent – also agreed or strongly agreed that the watchdog was effective in maintaining a low level of corruption in Singapore, compared with 84 per cent in 2024.

CPIB noted that Singapore was ranked the third-least corrupt country out of 182 nations in Transparency International’s 2025 Corruption Perceptions Index.

It was the top-ranked country in the Asia-Pacific.

The agency said Singapore also improved its ranking to second out of 143 countries for the absence of corruption in government, in the World Justice Project Rule of Law Index 2025.

“Over the past year, CPIB has intensified our corruption-prevention efforts across both the public and private sectors, and also invested more efforts on the vulnerable industries by partnering relevant stakeholders, including the media, professional bodies and trade associations, to amplify the anti-corruption message,” said CPIB.