{"id":43157,"date":"2026-04-10T04:29:41","date_gmt":"2026-04-09T20:29:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=43157"},"modified":"2026-04-10T04:29:41","modified_gmt":"2026-04-09T20:29:41","slug":"shanmugam-says-bloomberg-article-was-crafted-to-suggest-he-was-involved-in-shady-deals","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sgbuzz.com\/?p=43157","title":{"rendered":"Shanmugam says Bloomberg article was crafted to suggest he was involved in shady deals"},"content":{"rendered":"


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SINGAPORE \u2013 Coordinating Minister for National Security K. Shanmugam said a Bloomberg article that mentioned the sale of his property<\/span><\/a> suggested that he was involved in shady deals and possibly money laundering. <\/p>\n

Mr Shanmugam said the article implied that his transaction was a secret deal that became \u201cpolitical fodder\u201d, and that he took more money than what the property was worth from people who cannot be identified.<\/p>\n

The minister was taking the stand for the third day in an ongoing defamation trial<\/span><\/a> over the article on good class bungalow (GCB) transactions, headlined \u201cSingapore mansion deals are increasingly shrouded in secrecy\u201d.<\/p>\n

Mr Shanmugam, who is also Home Affairs Minister, and Manpower Minister Tan See Leng have sued Bloomberg and Mr Low De Wei<\/span><\/a>, the reporter who wrote the Dec 12, 2024, piece. <\/p>\n

The article mentioned the ministers\u2019 property deals in 2023 \u2013 the sale of Mr Shanmugam\u2019s former home in the Queen Astrid Park area to UBS Trustees for $88 million in August 2023 and Dr Tan\u2019s purchase of a bungalow in Brizay Park for nearly $27.3 million. <\/p>\n

Over the past three days, Mr Shanmugam has stressed that the article was written to \u201ctarget\u201d him by using a broader story about bungalow transactions to put out news about the sale of his property.<\/p>\n

He cited internal e-mails exchanged among Bloomberg journalists to show that they were trying to find a \u201chook\u201d to get into the story.<\/p>\n

On April 9, Mr Shanmugam was cross-examined briefly by Mr Low\u2019s lawyer, Senior Counsel Chelva Rajah.<\/p>\n

The minister said he \u201cwholly disagreed\u201d with Mr Rajah\u2019s suggestion that the article did not allege any criminal, illegal or improper conduct on his part.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Questioned later by his own lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, Mr Shanmugam said the \u201centire article is false\u201d.<\/p>\n

The article opens with the assertion that the ultra-rich in Singapore are \u201ccloaking\u201d their property purchases in secrecy. <\/p>\n

It states that deals made without the filing of caveats are \u201charder to track\u201d because they do not show up in a database maintained by the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA).<\/p>\n

A\u00a0caveat\u00a0is a legal document that property buyers can submit to the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) to register their interest in a property and prevent other people from buying it.<\/p>\n

The article also states that more individuals are buying mansions using trusts, to keep their identities private. <\/p>\n

It goes on to state that buyers pay a premium for \u201coff-radar\u201d transactions \u2013 a suggestion that Mr Shanmugam said was \u201cutter nonsense\u201d.<\/p>\n

He said whether a caveat is filed or not does not affect the price agreed on between the buyer and the seller.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s crazy that this kind of article can be put up,\u201d he said, adding that the article was \u201cvery carefully crafted\u201d to make the false points as malicious as possible.<\/p>\n

Mr Shanmugam said the non-filing of a caveat and the use of a trust did not keep a deal secret because records have to be filed with government agencies.<\/p>\n

He said a non-caveated deal does not appear in the URA database, but after the deal is completed, it can be found in a separate system run by the SLA.<\/p>\n

Mr Shanmugam added that the article deliberately downplayed Singapore\u2019s vigorous anti-money laundering framework and created the impression that due diligence is left entirely to real estate agents.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a sleight of hand going towards direct dishonesty,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Dr Tan took the stand later on April 9, and was cross-examined by Bloomberg\u2019s lawyer, Senior Counsel N. Sreenivasan. <\/p>\n

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Coordinating Minister for National Security K. Shanmugam (right) and Manpower Minister Tan See Leng leaving the High Court after the trial on April 9.<\/p>\n

PHOTO: LIANHE ZAOBAO<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Mr Sreenivasan described the minister as someone who had \u201creached the top\u201d of his profession when he entered politics.<\/p>\n

Dr Tan replied that in medical school, he was taught \u201cnot the pride of knowledge but the humility of wisdom\u201d, before thanking the lawyer for the compliment.<\/p>\n

When asked when the Bloomberg article came to his attention, Dr Tan said he read it on the day it was published.<\/p>\n

He had decided to sue by Dec 16, 2024, after taking legal advice.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was quite disturbed by the article after reading it,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n

\u201cI read it over and over again. I just felt that the way the article was drafted put me in a not very good light.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said that in October 2024, his press secretary had shown him an e-mail from Mr Low asking for a comment about his property purchase. <\/p>\n

The e-mail noted that Dr Tan had bought a GCB at Brizay Park for $27.3 million in 2023 in a non-caveated deal.<\/p>\n

Dr Tan said he did not think too much about the matter.<\/p>\n

He said: \u201cAll the facts are there. You know the purchase price, the year, the location. What is there to comment?\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that his understanding is that a caveat is voluntary and whether a buyer decides to file one depends on the level of comfort with the seller.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t understand what\u2019s so off-radar about it,\u201d said Dr Tan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The trial continues on April 10.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n


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