3 days ago
It's time for remisiers to reframe their professional identity
I REFER to The Business Times' report ' Remisiers reinvent themselves in Singapore's equity push ' (Jul 28, 2025).
For decades, the remisier has been one of the most misunderstood professions in Singapore's securities industry. Their role has significantly evolved from the colonial era, which was dominated by commodity trading in rubber, tin, and stocks, to today's sophisticated, multi-asset securities market.
Traditionally, remisiers primarily focused on transactional roles and trade executions with minimal advisory input. However, this has changed.
Modern remisiers have moved beyond traditional stockbroking to function as 'private bankers', similar to wealth management professionals. They help clients make informed investment decisions across various asset classes, including exchange-traded funds, real estate investment trusts, business trusts, structured products, equity-linked notes, corporate bonds, and Singapore Depository Receipts.
Remisiers decode complex product mechanics, assess investment risks and align strategies with clients' financial profiles and goals.
Unfortunately, the term 'remisier' often highlights their commission-based compensation, which understates their advisory expertise. As a result, many retail investors still perceive them as mere 'order takers' rather than as investment consultants.
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In reality, remisiers provide a wide range of value-added services both before and after each transaction. Therefore, it is timely to reframe their professional identity with a title that better reflects their expanded role, such as 'securities investment consultant'.
This new title would more accurately convey the transition from colonial-era trade execution to modern capital markets advisory, explicitly recognise their advisory capabilities and clearly differentiate them from low-cost, execution-only online broker platforms.
To support this transformation, formal professional development, such as the successful completion of the structured Remisier Development Programme, could be a requirement.
The term 'remisier' belongs to an era dominated by rubber plantations, tin mines and chalkboards. It can no longer future-proof the profession in today's digital, artificial intelligence-driven portfolios and multi-asset securities markets. Albert Fong Past president (2004 – 2013) of The Society of Remisiers (Singapore)
