SRS Portfolio

[elvintay07]

I only have 1 fund and it is infinity global stock index fund. Whole index to me is rather safe. Not sure what others are investing in. OCBC robo invest looks interesting but unfortunately can’t use SRS.

 

[zumaba]

Sorry to ask a newbie question: can I use SRS fund to buy UT like Fullerton SGD Cash Fund?
POEMS now has promotion for 0% fee on Unit Trusts.
Is it a good as saving option, in terms of return + safety?

Also if for a higher return, any UT to be recommend for SRS portfolio ?

Thank you for your advice in advance!

 

[henrylbh]

Sorry to ask a newbie question: can I use SRS fund to buy UT like Fullerton SGD Cash Fund?
POEMS now has promotion for 0% fee on Unit Trusts.
Is it a good as saving option, in terms of return + safety?

Also if for a higher return, any UT to be recommend for SRS portfolio ?

Thank you for your advice in advance!

Better and safer to go for any one or all the local banks with yields of at least 5% even though prices appear high. Hold long term and don't bother with the fluctuations in prices. Take them as long term fixed deposits.

 

[zumaba]

Better and safer to go for any one or all the local banks with yields of at least 5% even though prices appear high. Hold long term and don't bother with the fluctuations in prices. Take them as long term fixed deposits.

Thanks!

But "for any one" and "or all the local banks with yields of at least 5%" you are referring to?

 

[BBCWatcher]

Better and safer to go for any one or all the local banks with yields of at least 5% even though prices appear high. Hold long term and don't bother with the fluctuations in prices. Take them as long term fixed deposits.

But "for any one" and "or all the local banks with yields of at least 5%" you are referring to?

I agree that a fund such as the Fullerton SGD Cash Fund is almost always inappropriate for a SRS account. SRS accounts are inherently long-term vehicles, usually anyway.

Instead of individual bank stocks, why not make it simpler and just get ES3 or G3B (a Straits Times Index stock fund)? As of July 31, 2025, the 3 large bank stocks (DBS, OCBC, and UOB) make up over 50% of the Straits Times Index. Shocking, really, but that seems to be the current situation. When you invest in ES3 or G3B you're betting slightly over half of your investment on those 3 stocks. Plus you get 27 more stocks. ES3 or G3B is somewhat safer than the 3 individual bank stocks since it's more diversified, although it's very heavily skewed to the 3 bank stocks at least for now.

If ES3 or G3B is still too aggressive for you, try MBH, the quality Singapore corporate and quasi-sovereign bond index fund. For example, 50% ES3 and 50% MBH if you want a risk profile that's exactly in between all ES3 and all MBH.

 

[elvintay07]

If we start SRS at age of 30 and withdrawal at 62, I would whack any of the world index like Infinity global fund.

I got some friends put inside do nothing, some put in SSB and celebrate. But I can’t stand this nonsense. If today government can pay us 3% for SSB. It means they can get return of at least 5-8% right? Else why give you risk free 3%?

 

[BBCWatcher]

If we start SRS at age of 30 and withdrawal at 62, I would whack any of the world index like Infinity global fund.

About that age 62 (or 63 nowadays) earliest qualified SRS withdrawal age… ”Classic” retirement age is 65, and many people work past 65. I wouldn’t assume the earliest SRS age will end up happening. Also, usually you won’t start withdrawing until the year after you stop working. For example, if you retire at age 63 on July 1, and your birthday is on September 15, you won’t start withdrawing until the following January when you’re 64. That’s to get your taxable income (or most of it anyway) behind you so that you’re in a lower tax bracket (typically zero).

On top of all that, you won’t necessarily cash in your SRS investments for immediate spending. You might keep some or all of the proceeds invested. And if you end up retiring outside Singapore an SRS account might not end up working as well as you thought from a tax point of view. (Although it’s still a “reasonable bet” in most cases.)

I got some friends put inside do nothing, some put in SSB and celebrate. But I can’t stand this nonsense. If today government can pay us 3% for SSB. It means they can get return of at least 5-8% right? Else why give you risk free 3%?

I agree that’s a very strange thing to do in most cases. SSBs are limited to $200,000 per person (except if inherited), so if you’re stuffing lots of cash in low yielding but liquid SSBs why are you “burning” any of your $200,000 quota within an account that you can’t withdraw from (without a penalty) until at least age 62 or 63? For foreigners and late career individuals SSBs might make a little more sense, but it’s a strange choice generally. Of all the accounts you have, or could have, SRS accounts are inherently long term. Pick something(s) long term!

Another issue with SSBs is that they pay interest, interest you can’t actually withdraw from an SRS account (without penalty) before age 62 or 63. And nobody seems to offer automatic or automated SSB interest reinvesting. So you’ve got some labor effort involved to monitor that interest and reinvest it. If you can reasonably avoid that labor effort, why not? (And they mature in 10 years, so you’ve got to monitor that too. And that might happen in a lower interest rate environment. Yuck!)

 

[elvintay07]

Thanks bro. Machiam thesis. So the idea is to go long like US s&p500 etf or global etf? Or like bonds/ SSB like what others said?

About that age 62 (or 63 nowadays) earliest qualified SRS withdrawal age… ”Classic” retirement age is 65, and many people work past 65. I wouldn’t assume the earliest SRS age will end up happening. Also, usually you won’t start withdrawing until the year after you stop working. For example, if you retire at age 63 on July 1, and your birthday is on September 15, you won’t start withdrawing until the following January when you’re 64. That’s to get your taxable income (or most of it anyway) behind you so that you’re in a lower tax bracket (typically zero).

On top of all that, you won’t necessarily cash in your SRS investments for immediate spending. You might keep some or all of the proceeds invested. And if you end up retiring outside Singapore an SRS account might not end up working as well as you thought from a tax point of view. (Although it’s still a “reasonable bet” in most cases.)

I agree that’s a very strange thing to do in most cases. SSBs are limited to $200,000 per person (except if inherited), so if you’re stuffing lots of cash in low yielding but liquid SSBs why are you “burning” any of your $200,000 quota within an account that you can’t withdraw from (without a penalty) until at least age 62 or 63? For foreigners and late career individuals SSBs might make a little more sense, but it’s a strange choice generally. Of all the accounts you have, or could have, SRS accounts are inherently long term. Pick something(s) long term!

Another issue with SSBs is that they pay interest, interest you can’t actually withdraw from an SRS account (without penalty) before age 62 or 63. And nobody seems to offer automatic or automated SSB interest reinvesting. So you’ve got some labor effort involved to monitor that interest and reinvest it. If you can reasonably avoid that labor effort, why not? (And they mature in 10 years, so you’ve got to monitor that too. And that might happen in a lower interest rate environment. Yuck!)

 

[elvintay07]

Thanks bro. Machiam thesis. So the idea is to go long like US s&p500 etf or global etf? Or like bonds/ SSB like what others said?

About that age 62 (or 63 nowadays) earliest qualified SRS withdrawal age… ”Classic” retirement age is 65, and many people work past 65. I wouldn’t assume the earliest SRS age will end up happening. Also, usually you won’t start withdrawing until the year after you stop working. For example, if you retire at age 63 on July 1, and your birthday is on September 15, you won’t start withdrawing until the following January when you’re 64. That’s to get your taxable income (or most of it anyway) behind you so that you’re in a lower tax bracket (typically zero).

On top of all that, you won’t necessarily cash in your SRS investments for immediate spending. You might keep some or all of the proceeds invested. And if you end up retiring outside Singapore an SRS account might not end up working as well as you thought from a tax point of view. (Although it’s still a “reasonable bet” in most cases.)

I agree that’s a very strange thing to do in most cases. SSBs are limited to $200,000 per person (except if inherited), so if you’re stuffing lots of cash in low yielding but liquid SSBs why are you “burning” any of your $200,000 quota within an account that you can’t withdraw from (without a penalty) until at least age 62 or 63? For foreigners and late career individuals SSBs might make a little more sense, but it’s a strange choice generally. Of all the accounts you have, or could have, SRS accounts are inherently long term. Pick something(s) long term!

Another issue with SSBs is that they pay interest, interest you can’t actually withdraw from an SRS account (without penalty) before age 62 or 63. And nobody seems to offer automatic or automated SSB interest reinvesting. So you’ve got some labor effort involved to monitor that interest and reinvest it. If you can reasonably avoid that labor effort, why not? (And they mature in 10 years, so you’ve got to monitor that too. And that might happen in a lower interest rate environment. Yuck!)

 

[BBCWatcher]

Thanks bro. Machiam thesis. So the idea is to go long like US s&p500 etf or global etf? Or like bonds/ SSB like what others said?

Just pick something(s) long-term in your SRS account, that's all. If you want 100% bonds within your SRS account, try MBH for example. If you want 100% stocks within your SRS account, try ES3 or the Amundi Index MSCI World fund, for example. If you want some combination, try a combination. If the fund pays dividends, set up automatic dividend reinvestment (if available).

SSBs are terrific for a couple purposes. (My spouse and I hold some!) But I don't think they're generally great within SRS accounts.

I don't think you should select investments within your SRS account in isolation. Whatever you select should be considered across your household's whole investment portfolio. And then (for secondary tax optimization reasons) typically your SRS account should hold the lowest expected yielding assets within your whole portfolio. For example, if your total portfolio has a value of $200,000, your SRS account has a total value of $40,000, and you want 25% of your total portfolio ($50,000) to be invested in bonds, then hold $40,000 worth of MBH (for example) inside your SRS account, $10,000 worth of MBH (for example) outside your SRS account, and $150,000 in stocks (all outside your SRS account).

 

[marcoyeo]

Just when I reach 63 and plan to withdraw SRS, if the market goes down, I'll withdraw from other pots. I kept 10K in SSB and will probably accumulate bond etf like MBH in my SRS just in case my SRS equities are down upon the eligible withdrawal age.

 

[BBCWatcher]

Just when I reach 63 and plan to withdraw SRS, if the market goes down, I'll withdraw from other pots.

Whether the market goes down doesn't matter for SRS accounts. Not any more or less than it does with your entire investment portfolio.

The only thing a withdrawal from an SRS account means is that there's a tax computation, often resulting in zero tax owed. SRS withdrawals don't mean you're required to spend the money. SRS withdrawals don't even mean you're required to liquidate the investment(s). ("In kind" withdrawals are allowed, where you keep your investment position intact and simply transfer the investment, or a portion of the investment, from inside the SRS "wrapper" to outside.)

If you're concerned about the market going down at age 63, or whenever, then you simply adjust your whole investment portfolio to address that concern. (Which probably means making no adjustments whatsoever specifically within your SRS account if you followed the logic I outline in the previous post.) However, you shouldn't be overly concerned. You probably don't plan to retire at age 63 then instantly spend every penny of your investment portfolio on food, clothing, shelter, and other real goods and services. Instead, you would plan for 40+ years of consumption from age 63 — and an investment portfolio (and longevity insurance) to support that 40+ years of consumption. Thus it's reasonable to slowly, progressively adjust your whole investment portfolio to shift from more volatile assets to less volatile assets as you approach retirement — for example, to shift from a 80% stocks-20% bonds portfolio to a 50% stocks-50% bonds portfolio.

I kept 10K in SSB and will probably accumulate bond etf like MBH in my SRS just in case my SRS equities are down upon the eligible withdrawal age.

See above. I think you're missing the point(s).

 

[demoforce1]

Whether the market goes down doesn't matter for SRS accounts. Not any more or less than it does with your entire investment portfolio.

The only thing a withdrawal from an SRS account means is that there's a tax computation, often resulting in zero tax owed. SRS withdrawals don't mean you're required to spend the money. SRS withdrawals don't even mean you're required to liquidate the investment(s). ("In kind" withdrawals are allowed, where you keep your investment position intact and simply transfer the investment, or a portion of the investment, from inside the SRS "wrapper" to outside.)

If you're concerned about the market going down at age 63, or whenever, then you simply adjust your whole investment portfolio to address that concern. (Which probably means making no adjustments whatsoever specifically within your SRS account if you followed the logic I outline in the previous post.) However, you shouldn't be overly concerned. You probably don't plan to retire at age 63 then instantly spend every penny of your investment portfolio on food, clothing, shelter, and other real goods and services. Instead, you would plan for 40+ years of consumption from age 63 — and an investment portfolio (and longevity insurance) to support that 40+ years of consumption. Thus it's reasonable to slowly, progressively adjust your whole investment portfolio to shift from more volatile assets to less volatile assets as you approach retirement — for example, to shift from a 80% stocks-20% bonds portfolio to a 50% stocks-50% bonds portfolio.

See above. I think you're missing the point(s).

Do you mean we can move our SG stock from SRS bank to CDP? The same for Amundi UT in Endowus or Poems?

 

[BBCWatcher]

Do you mean we can move our SG stock from SRS bank to CDP? The same for Amundi UT in Endowus or Poems?

The "in kind" SRS withdrawal option might depend on which security you're holding, and perhaps with whom (with which broker). But you'll probably have that option in most cases.

If an "in kind" withdrawal is not possible then you still have a couple good options:

1. Sell the investment position(s), withdraw the proceeds as cash, then quickly repurchase the same position(s). This option might incur some trading costs, but you probably already know how to minimize those costs.
2. Like Option #1, but use the cash proceeds to purchase other investment position(s) — for portfolio rebalancing purposes, something you'll presumably be doing anyway once or twice per year. If the "direction" of the rebalancing exercise happens to align with your SRS withdrawal, great!

 

[yellowduck]

recently i applied an srs account and started to deposit in a few thousands in. When i want to use my ocbc securies to buy blue chip stocks, i dont have the option to select payment with "srs", only have cpf or cash. why? am i missing something here?..

 

[maumu]

recently i applied an srs account and started to deposit in a few thousands in. When i want to use my ocbc securies to buy blue chip stocks, i dont have the option to select payment with "srs", only have cpf or cash. why? am i missing something here?..

is your srs account applied through OCBC?

 

[highsulphur]

recently i applied an srs account and started to deposit in a few thousands in. When i want to use my ocbc securies to buy blue chip stocks, i dont have the option to select payment with "srs", only have cpf or cash. why? am i missing something here?..

You need to tie up your srs account with your broker (ocbc). Call them to find out how to

 

[yellowduck]

is your srs account applied through OCBC?

Yes, my srs account with ocbc..

 

[yellowduck]

You need to tie up your srs account with your broker (ocbc). Call them to find out how to

But my srs account with ocbc, still need to link up? Not auto?

 

[highsulphur]

But my srs account with ocbc, still need to link up? Not auto?

not necessary auto linked. You probably need to give permission to the brokerage arm