Consolidation, Coronavirus, And More: Answers To Your Syfe Questions

The evolving COVID-19 situation has affected workers, households, and businesses alike. In view of the recent consolidation of the digital wealth management industry, our clients understandably have raised some questions about Syfe. We want you to know that your investments continue to remain in safe hands. We have been seeing steady growth throughout this period as more and more new investors trust their money to us, and our existing clients stay on track with their investment plans. 

Here are our answers to the questions we hear most:

How is Syfe keeping our assets safe? 

The security of your funds and assets is of utmost importance. Syfe is licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), and we hold a Capital Markets Services (CMS) License for retail fund management.

As a CMS license holder, we have met all the stringent requirements and standards set by MAS to prevent a bankruptcy event from happening, and to keep our clients’ funds and assets safe. This includes meeting the minimum capital requirement, audits and compliance to ensure that Syfe has sufficient daily cash flow to meet all operational needs.

Funds in your Syfe account are held in a Trust Account in DBS Bank while your investments are kept in a Custodian Account through Saxo Capital Markets. These are held separately from Syfe’s assets. This means that Syfe will never be able to use your funds and assets, even in the very unlikely event that Syfe stops operating.

Finally, all clients are free to withdraw their money any time they wish. Syfe does not impose any exit penalties or lock-in periods, so clients are genuinely able to access their money any time.

Who is Syfe backed by?

Syfe is backed by leading VCs and investment professionals not just in Asia, but across the globe. Led by UK-based VC fund Unbound, we raised S$5.2 million in one of the largest seed rounds seen in Southeast Asia last year. The raise also included personal investments from industry leaders such as David Rogers, MD, State Street Global Advisors; Paul Redbourn, MD & Head of Equities, UBS Japan; and Philip Freise, Partner, KKR.

Are operations affected by the current market situation?

In the midst of the evolving COVID-19 situation in Singapore, Syfe will continue to provide the best level of service, investment advisory, and support as we all adjust to this new reality. 

  • We have implemented new measures in response: We have structured our teams to work flexibly so there will be no interruption in our ability to process new funds, manage client portfolios, and facilitate withdrawals.
  • We have moved our popular in-person seminars to online webinars – you can have a look at the upcoming seminars and sign up here.
  • Our multiple lines of communication continue to be open so our clients can reach us easily. You can email us at support@syfe.com, or call / Whatsapp us at +65 3138 1215. 
  • Our financial advisors are on hand to support you via calls or text as needed. If you have any questions, please get in touch with them here.

Will Syfe be rolling out new initiatives or products soon?

We are always striving to make our clients’ investment journey with us better. We are currently working on launching a new product very soon. We will also be implementing MyInfo for easier and faster account sign-ups.

How have Syfe portfolios performed amid this market volatility?

Despite the unprecedented volatility we have seen, Syfe portfolios across all risk categories have remained resilient, experiencing smaller dips in value as compared to the benchmarks and broader market.

Using our popular 15% Downside Risk (DR) portfolio as an illustration, the portfolio dipped 10% from February 24 to March 23, while the comparable benchmark Morningstar Moderate Index lost 21% and the S&P 500 fell 31% within the same time period. 

The key to Syfe’s outperformance lies in our automated risk managed investing (ARI) algorithm. As ARI detected a sustained increase in market volatility and correspondingly, a marked increase in risk levels across all portfolios, it adjusted portfolio weights by pulling back some of the allocations to higher-risk equities and increasing the share of lower-risk bonds.

This timely rebalancing cushioned the impact of the market drop on portfolio values, and gave our clients the confidence to hold on to their investments. You can read more about how ARI helped our clients avoid potentially large losses here.

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