CPF: Amount due to members – $348b, %?

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September 8, 2017

Amount due to CPF members is $348.5b

According to the Department of Statistics’ web site – the Amount Due to (CPF) Members is $348.5 billion in July, 2017.

This has been increasing steadily, annually from $150.9 million in January 1961.

 

Real % was 0.8% from 1999 to 2016?

Since inflation from 1999 to 2016 was about 1.7 per cent per annum (CPI 2018 98.932 divided by 1999 73.814) – does it mean that the real annualised rate of return on our CPF Ordinary Account is only about 0.8 per cent (2.5 – 1.7) per annum?

Lowest real % of all national pension funds in the world?

Is this the lowest real rate of return of all national pension funds in the world since 1999 – the year that I understand that the CPF Ordinary Account interest rate has remained at 2.5 per cent until now?

Returns from investing our CPF?

What is the annualised rate of return derived from investing our CPF funds since 1999?

In this connection, according to the article “askST: Why does Singapore have an external debt of US$1.766 trillion? (Straits Times, Nov 20, 2016)

– “A Government article on the subject explains that Singapore does not borrow to spend. Instead, it invests all the proceeds which it has borrowed“.

Cumulative returns from investing our CPF vs % to CPF members?

What is the cumulative difference between the annualised rate of return derived from investing our CPF funds since 1961 (when CPF started) to today, and the annualised rate given to CPF members?

In absolute numbers on a cumulative basis with interest – how much money are we talking about over the last 55 years?

No transparency and accountability?

Are we the only developing or developed country in the world that may arguably be, non-transparent, as there is no disclosure on the rate of return derived from our pension funds relative to the weighted average interest rate paid on all our CPF accounts (Ordinary, Special, Medisave and Retirement accounts) historically?

$348.5b owed to CPF members?

Also, does it mean that our domestic debt owed to CPF members is $348.5 billion?

Leong Sze Hian

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About the Author

Leong
Leong Sze Hian has served as the president of 4 professional bodies, honorary consul of 2 countries, an alumnus of Harvard University, authored 4 books, quoted over 1500 times in the media , has been a radio talkshow host, a newspaper daily columnist, Wharton Fellow, SEACeM Fellow, columnist for theonlinecitizen and Malaysiakini, executive producer of Ilo Ilo (40 international awards), Hotel Mumbai (associate producer), invited to speak more than 200 times in about 40 countries, CIFA advisory board member, founding advisor to the Financial Planning Associations of 2 countries. He has 3 Masters, 2 Bachelors degrees and 13 professional  qualifications.