SGX Market Strategist, Equity & Fixed Income, Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX)

Geoff Howie

SGX Market Strategist, Equity & Fixed Income

Asia’s leading multi-asset exchange

Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX)

Singapore Exchange is Asia’s leading and trusted market infrastructure, facilitating the exchange of capital and ideas to create value for people, businesses and economies. As a multi-asset exchange operating equity, fixed income and derivatives markets to the highest regulatory standards, SGX is a vertically integrated business that provides listing, trading, clearing, settlement, depository and data services.

With about 40% of listed companies and over 80% of listed bonds originating outside of Singapore as well as established linkages across the region and in Europe, SGX is Asia’s most international and connected exchange. Offering a full suite of derivatives products across Asian equity indices, commodities and currencies, SGX is the world’s most liquid international market for the benchmark equity indices of China, India, Japan and ASEAN.

As Asia’s pioneering central counterparty, SGX is globally recognised for its risk management and clearing capabilities, and was one of the first globally to adopt the Principles for Financial Market Infrastructure.

Headquartered in AAA-rated Singapore, SGX has over 800 employees including offices in Beijing, Chicago, Hong Kong, London, New York, Mumbai, San Francisco, Shanghai and Tokyo.

Equity Bottom-Up

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<li>
The 5 healthcare-related stocks which are included in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index rebounded an average of 31% since the global equity market low this year on 23 March, outpacing the STI (+14%) and iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index (+19%). 
	 </li>
	<li>
Among the 5 stocks, ParkwayLife REIT, Singapore Medical Group and Raffles Medical Group saw significant increase in trading activity in the 2020 YTD period to 28 May, with average daily turnover growing 69% compared to CY2019. 
	 </li>
	<li>
All 5 companies have published their 2019 Sustainability Reports. Topics highlighted include efficiency of patient services, proper disposal of biohazardous waste, accuracy of healthcare related marketing materials and protection of patients’ personal data. 
	 
	Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing has gained significant traction in the past decade. According to Morningstar, flows into sustainable funds totaled US$21.4 billion in 2019, almost four times as much as the record set in 2018. It also noted that sustainable funds outperformed their conventional peers last year, with 35% in the top quartiles of their categories and 66% in the top halves. (<a href="https://www.morningstar.com/articles/972860/the-esg-fund-universe-is-rapidly-expanding?fireglass_rsn=true">link</a>). 
	 

	In the healthcare sector, ESG factors are prevalent considerations as healthcare players are often highly regulated and play an important role in the communities that they serve. ESG concerns for the sector include, but not limited to, the disposal of hazardous biochemical waste, emissions from radiation therapy, accessibility and affordability of healthcare services and products, as well as the quality and safety of these services and products. 
	The iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index measures the performance of liquid SGX-listed stocks that meet the ESG reporting standards as provided by Sustainalytics®. The index is composed of 114 constituents with a combined market capitalization of over S$300 billion as of 28 May 2020. Healthcare-related stocks in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index 
	There are five healthcare-related stocks listed in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index, of which three are healthcare service providers and two are healthcare REITs. These five stocks, Raffles Medical Group, Singapore Medical Group, Singapore O&amp;G, ParkwayLife REIT and First REIT rebounded an average of 31.2% in total returns since the global equity market low on 23 March to 28 May. In the same period, the STI and iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index generated lower total returns of 13.9% and 18.6% respectively. In the long term, these five stocks also outperformed other healthcare stocks who are not in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index. The five stocks generated an average 5 year annusalised total returns of 1.2%, outpacing the   -6.1% average of the 20 healthcare stocks which listed before Jun 2015 and are not in the index.
	​​​​​​
</li>
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 <img src='https://api2.sgx.com/sites/default/files/2020-05/Capture_3.PNG' alt='capture' />
 </figure>
 <div class='content-caption'>capture</div>
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Significant increase in 2020 YTD trading activities for ParkwayLife REIT, SMG and RMG 
The 2020 YTD through to 28 May average daily turnover for three of the five stocks, ParkwayLife REIT (+93%), Singapore Medical Group (+69%) and Raffles Medical Group (+42%) grew significantly compared to full year 2019. Together these three stocks saw a total of S$5.2 million average daily turnover in 2020 YTD, up 69% from S$3.1 million in 2019. 
The table below shows the list of five healthcare-related stocks that are included in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index, sorted from largest to smallest by market capitalisation. 
 

<table class="table table-striped"><tbody>
<tr>
<td>
			Name
			</td>
			<td>
			SGX Code
			</td>
			<td>
			Market Cap (S$M)
			</td>
			<td>
			Total Return from 23 Mar to 28 May
			</td>
			<td>
			2020 YTD Daily Turnover (S$M)
			</td>
			<td>
			P/B Ratio
			</td>
			<td>
			12M Dividend Yield
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			PARKWAYLIFE REIT
			</td>
			<td>
			C2PU
			</td>
			<td>
			2,003
			</td>
			<td>
			21.6%
			</td>
			<td>
			2.98
			</td>
			<td>
			1.7
			</td>
			<td>
			4.0%
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			RAFFLES MEDICAL GROUP
			</td>
			<td>
			BSL
			</td>
			<td>
			1,637
			</td>
			<td>
			22.6%
			</td>
			<td>
			1.92
			</td>
			<td>
			1.9
			</td>
			<td>
			2.8%
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			FIRST REIT
			</td>
			<td>
			AW9U
			</td>
			<td>
			682
			</td>
			<td>
			51.2%
			</td>
			<td>
			2.13
			</td>
			<td>
			0.9
			</td>
			<td>
			9.8%
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			SINGAPORE MEDICAL GROUP
			</td>
			<td>
			5OT
			</td>
			<td>
			118
			</td>
			<td>
			32.4%
			</td>
			<td>
			0.29
			</td>
			<td>
			0.8
			</td>
			<td>
			--
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			SINGAPORE O&amp;G
			</td>
			<td>
			1D8
			</td>
			<td>
			93
			</td>
			<td>
			28.3%
			</td>
			<td>
			0.07
			</td>
			<td>
			2.6
			</td>
			<td>
			3.2%
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Average
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td> </td>
			<td>
			31.2%
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			4.9
			</td>
		</tr>
</tbody></table>
Source: Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, SGX (Data as of 28 May 2020) 
 

Messages from 2019 Sustainability Reports 
All five companies have published their 2019 Sustainability Report, which include detailed materiality assessment of key sustainability factors identified by the companies’ management. <a href="https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/289X8ZETSURT7CN4/0eda746e7b463c11cde5be73a0f3c08eb6bb704c1b90d466fb95ff6075eadb7a">Raffles Medical Group</a> publishes its Sustainability Report as a separate document, while the Sustainability Reports of <a href="https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/TPMNRNE2APG31BP3/0ad4fc090ccccb169319e46aabbe1de33953cc102dd878de48e31aca6064066c">ParkwayLife REIT</a>, <a href="https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/Z73C3TQRZNRYW8SZ/74ae0b0aacb8611b6fc41c9daff132896986363625aef789b6b0dd0cc2da2f22">Singapore Medical Group</a>, <a href="https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/PYRGOCI574R2KOHM/ba1540e6cacb0aaee471cd6ce16aeaac38078c7b713fad39d924e3ae9c33f7b2">First REIT</a> and <a href="https://links.sgx.com/1.0.0/corporate-announcements/66KIFVR4ORUPKP32/3f17ba3d0e5083954b2106bec655243e087248eee451848be5c49af23112a8b4">Singapore O&amp;G</a> can be found on pages 50, 15, 33 and 34 of their 2019 Annual Reports respectively. Raffles Medical Group reiterated its commitment to building an environment that is patient-centric, energy efficient and safe for its patients, employees, and community. In order to provide faster and more efficient patient service, RMG launched eQueue, a system that allows patients to obtain a queue number before arriving at their preferred Raffles Medical clinic. First REIT recognised its duty as a healthcare REIT to ensure that its tenants assume their responsibility on proper disposal of biohazardous waste. To address environmental concerns, Siloam hospitals’ radiology departments have also introduced filmless radiology consultations. Singapore Medical Group noted that internal checks on marketing and labeling are pertinent and imperative to the Group in ensuring that accurate and non-misleading information is provided to patients and the community. It also places great emphasis on privacy protection, including preventing the loss of patients’ data and breaches of patients’ privacy.
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The 5 healthcare-related stocks which are included in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index rebounded an average of 31% since the global equity market low this year on 23 March, outpacing the STI (+14%) and iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index (+19%). 
	 
	
Among the 5 stocks, ParkwayLife REIT, Singapore Medical Group and Raffles Medical Group saw significant increase in trading activity in the 2020 YTD period to 28 May, with average daily turnover growing 69% compared to CY2019. 
	 
	
All 5 companies have published their 2019 Sustainability Reports. Topics highlighted include efficiency of patient services, proper disposal of biohazardous waste, accuracy of healthcare related marketing materials and protection of patients’ personal data. 
	 
	Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) investing has gained significant traction in the past decade. According to Morningstar, flows into sustainable funds totaled US$21.4 billion in 2019, almost four times as much as the record set in 2018. It also noted that sustainable funds outperformed their conventional peers last year, with 35% in the top quartiles of their categories and 66% in the top halves. (link).  
	 

	In the healthcare sector, ESG factors are prevalent considerations as healthcare players are often highly regulated and play an important role in the communities that they serve. ESG concerns for the sector include, but not limited to, the disposal of hazardous biochemical waste, emissions from radiation therapy, accessibility and affordability of healthcare services and products, as well as the quality and safety of these services and products.  
	The iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index measures the performance of liquid SGX-listed stocks that meet the ESG reporting standards as provided by Sustainalytics®. The index is composed of 114 constituents with a combined market capitalization of over S$300 billion as of 28 May 2020.  Healthcare-related stocks in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index   
	There are five healthcare-related stocks listed in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index, of which three are healthcare service providers and two are healthcare REITs. These five stocks, Raffles Medical Group, Singapore Medical Group, Singapore O&amp;G, ParkwayLife REIT and First REIT rebounded an average of 31.2% in total returns since the global equity market low on 23 March to 28 May. In the same period, the STI and iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index generated lower total returns of 13.9% and 18.6% respectively.  In the long term, these five stocks also outperformed other healthcare stocks who are not in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index. The five stocks generated an average 5 year annusalised total returns of 1.2%, outpacing the   -6.1% average of the 20 healthcare stocks which listed before Jun 2015 and are not in the index.
	​​​​​​




      
    
    capture


Significant increase in 2020 YTD trading activities for ParkwayLife REIT, SMG and RMG  
The 2020 YTD through to 28 May average daily turnover for three of the five stocks, ParkwayLife REIT (+93%), Singapore Medical Group (+69%) and Raffles Medical Group (+42%) grew significantly compared to full year 2019. Together these three stocks saw a total of S$5.2 million average daily turnover in 2020 YTD, up 69% from S$3.1 million in 2019.  
The table below shows the list of five healthcare-related stocks that are included in the iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index, sorted from largest to smallest by market capitalisation. 
 




			Name
			
			
			SGX Code
			
			
			Market Cap (S$M)
			
			
			Total Return from 23 Mar to 28 May
			
			
			2020 YTD Daily Turnover (S$M)
			
			
			P/B Ratio
			
			
			12M Dividend Yield
			
		


			PARKWAYLIFE REIT
			
			
			C2PU
			
			
			2,003
			
			
			21.6%
			
			
			2.98
			
			
			1.7
			
			
			4.0%
			
		


			RAFFLES MEDICAL GROUP
			
			
			BSL
			
			
			1,637
			
			
			22.6%
			
			
			1.92
			
			
			1.9
			
			
			2.8%
			
		


			FIRST REIT
			
			
			AW9U
			
			
			682
			
			
			51.2%
			
			
			2.13
			
			
			0.9
			
			
			9.8%
			
		


			SINGAPORE MEDICAL GROUP
			
			
			5OT
			
			
			118
			
			
			32.4%
			
			
			0.29
			
			
			0.8
			
			
			--
			
		


			SINGAPORE O&amp;G
			
			
			1D8
			
			
			93
			
			
			28.3%
			
			
			0.07
			
			
			2.6
			
			
			3.2%
			
		


			Average
			
			
			 
			
			 
			
			31.2%
			
			
			 
			
			
			 
			
			
			4.9
			
		

Source: Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, SGX (Data as of 28 May 2020)   
 

Messages from 2019 Sustainability Reports   
All five companies have published their 2019 Sustainability Report, which include detailed materiality assessment of key sustainability factors identified by the companies’ management. Raffles Medical Group publishes its Sustainability Report as a separate document, while the Sustainability Reports of ParkwayLife REIT, Singapore Medical Group, First REIT and Singapore O&amp;G can be found on pages 50, 15, 33 and 34 of their 2019 Annual Reports respectively.  Raffles Medical Group reiterated its commitment to building an environment that is patient-centric, energy efficient and safe for its patients, employees, and community. In order to provide faster and more efficient patient service, RMG launched eQueue, a system that allows patients to obtain a queue number before arriving at their preferred Raffles Medical clinic.  First REIT recognised its duty as a healthcare REIT to ensure that its tenants assume their responsibility on proper disposal of biohazardous waste. To address environmental concerns, Siloam hospitals’ radiology departments have also introduced filmless radiology consultations.  Singapore Medical Group noted that internal checks on marketing and labeling are pertinent and imperative to the Group in ensuring that accurate and non-misleading information is provided to patients and the community. It also places great emphasis on privacy protection, including preventing the loss of patients’ data and breaches of patients’ privacy.



iEdge SG ESG Transparency Index Healthcare Plays Gained 31% since 23 Mar

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<li>
The Smartkarma Insight 2020 healthcare sector implications of COVID-19 panel discussed a renewed healthcare infrastructure drive by developed countries, localisation of healthcare supply chains yet need for global biopharma collaborations, and more frontline technology adoption. 
	 </li>
	<li>
Over the first five months of 2020, pandemic management across the globe has been the defining driver of the Healthcare Sector by a long mile, particularly in developed countries. This coincided with ASEAN healthcare stocks, traditional outperformers, lagging their regional &amp; global peers. 
	 </li>
	<li>Singapore healthcare stocks that bucked median declines across ASEAN in 2020 YTD with soaring participation included Medtecs Intl Corp, Biolidics, Clearbridge, Riverstone and UG Healthcare. Together, the five averaged 140% gains, with a 30-fold increase in turnover from 2019.</li>
</ul>
Traditionally more secular than cyclical, Healthcare Sectors across the world have been both laden and lauded in 2020 and are poised for significant transition and transformation in the years ahead. While longevity and population growth have been key regional healthcare drivers of the past, pandemic mamangment is now set to play a key role in re-shaping potential drivers for the key sector. 

For the 2020 year to 22 May, Healthcare stocks in ASEAN have been comparatively defensive when comparing median returns to benchmarks. However, the median total returns have lagged the relatively flat returns of healthcare stocks listed globally and across Asia Pacific.
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 <img src='https://api2.sgx.com/sites/default/files/2020-05/median%20total%20returns%2026%20May.PNG' alt='Median Total Return ' />
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 <div class='content-caption'>Median Total Return </div>
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Longer term, the past 10 years of regional longevity, population growth and burgeoning consumer markets have seen healthcare stocks in ASEAN and Asia Pacific outpace their global peers based on median total returns. However the demands of pandemic management on multiple countries less prepared for the pandemic with healthcare services and products has seen more mixed stock returns over the past five months.

Long-term Healthcare Sector Implications of COVID-19 with Smartkarma

Last week, the Smartkarma Insight 2020 Asia-focused digital investment conference provided a panel session focused on the long-term healthcare Implications of COVID-19. Key themes established during the Healthcare panel (click <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3lhki9edBBU&amp;list=PLgRR6L9L1ZBLwuAPf3CFZYSAUFODQUiLY&amp;index=6&amp;t=0s">here</a>) included:

<ul>
<li>
Need for adjustment to the new operating environment. The need for prudent management of operational costs, maintaining adequate capitalisation and cash flows while closely monitoring and adapting to risks. This is clearly important to any business, however considerable demands on the Healthcare Sector over the past five months, and the need to take opportunities when they arise, have poised this as a key driver. Kemp Dolliver, CIO at Cherrystone Hill Capital Management noted momentum in Asia Healthcare primary listings, secondary listings and mergers and acquisitions have continued into 2020. 
	 </li>
	<li>
Potential for a Healthcare Infrastructure Drive in the Development World - Ewan Davis, Director of Quadria Capital noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a lack of access to care and fundamental lack of infrastructure and technology to test and manage outbreaks in multiple developed markets, and a call-to-arms for government and consumers alike to make sure healthcare infrastructure is amended with new services, products and channels of engagement. 
	 </li>
	<li>
More localisation of healthcare supply chains. Mr Davis also noted that while not specific to Healthcare, the supply chain shock of COVID-19 has seen this acceleration of the need for healthcare supply chain to localise. Mr Davis noted there had been a pre-existing drive to localise production of medical devices and pharmaceuticals and incorporation of more technology transfer, however this has evolved to an imperative. Mr Lim See Wah, Chairman &amp; CEO of Hyphens Pharma also noted that in time the industry would expect to see a return to equilibrium between localisation and globalisation, as companies would balance costs and risks. 
	 </li>
	<li>
Global biopharma collaborations - While governments look to localise, Mr Dolliver noted regional biopharma companies that are producing globally competitive products approved in local markets after significant years of research and development will still need to license out, and form partnerships with global multinational corporations in order to achieve global distribution scale. 
	 </li>
	<li>
Greater technology adoption - Jonathan Sudharta, CEO &amp; Co-Founder of Halodoc, highlighted that the Healthcare Sector has become more comfortable with using technology in frontline and diagnostic services which is expected to see significant impacts on triage services. Mr Lim See Wah also added that COVID-19 is a catalyst for accelerating technology adoption by the Sector and that overall digitalisation can play a key role in increasing efficient delivery of healthcare services.</li>
</ul>
 Singapore Healthcare Stocks with Surges in Performance and Participation in 2020 YTD

As noted above, median total returns of Singapore and ASEAN healthcare stocks have lagged the relatively flat returns of healthcare stocks listed globally and across Asia Pacific in the 2020 year to 22 May. However a number of stocks have outpaced the group base with products and services more relevant to pandemic management.

Singapore healthcare stocks that have delivered gains, with a surge in participation in the stock as gauged by average daily turnover included Medtecs International Corporation, Biolidics, Clearbridge, Riverstone Holdings, and UG Healthcare. With average total returns of 139.9%, together the five stocks averaged S$16.73 million in daily turnover for the 2020 year through to 22 May, compared to their combined average daily turnover of $0.52 million in 2019.

Detailed in the table below, all five stocks were amongst the 100 most traded stocks by turnover in the 2020 year through to 22 May.

<table class="table table-striped"><tbody>
<tr>
<td>
			Most Actively Traded Healthcare stocks in 2020 to 22 May
			</td>
			<td>
			SGX Code
			</td>
			<td>
			Mkt Cap S$M
			</td>
			<td>
			2020 to 22 May  Average Daily Turnover S$M
			</td>
			<td>
			2019 Average Daily Turnover S$M
			</td>
			<td>
			2020 to 22 May Total Return %
			</td>
			<td>
			Price to Book Ratio (x)
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Medtecs Intl Corp
			</td>
			<td>
			546
			</td>
			<td>
			          97.25
			</td>
			<td>
			6.85
			</td>
			<td>
			0.03
			</td>
			<td>
			378.4
			</td>
			<td>
			1.1
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Biolidics
			</td>
			<td>
			8YY
			</td>
			<td>
			          98.94
			</td>
			<td>
			3.47
			</td>
			<td>
			0.03
			</td>
			<td>
			55.1
			</td>
			<td>
			11.9
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Clearbridge
			</td>
			<td>
			1H3
			</td>
			<td>
			        106.12
			</td>
			<td>
			2.90
			</td>
			<td>
			0.28
			</td>
			<td>
			28.3
			</td>
			<td>
			2.0
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Riverstone Holdings
			</td>
			<td>
			AP4
			</td>
			<td>
			     1,385.83
			</td>
			<td>
			2.02
			</td>
			<td>
			0.16
			</td>
			<td>
			102.2
			</td>
			<td>
			5.4
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			UG Healthcare
			</td>
			<td>
			41A
			</td>
			<td>
			          64.71
			</td>
			<td>
			1.50
			</td>
			<td>
			0.01
			</td>
			<td>
			135.7
			</td>
			<td>
			1.5
			</td>
		</tr>
<tr>
<td>
			Average
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			 
			</td>
			<td>
			139.9
			</td>
			<td>
			4.4
			</td>
		</tr>
</tbody></table>
Source: SGX, Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters  (Data as of 22 May 2020). Note Riverstone Holdings is listed on the Mainboard, with the remaining four stocks listed on Catalist

Note, other Healthcare-related stocks that were also amongst the 100 most traded stocks by turnover in the 2020 year to 22 May included ParkwayLife REIT, First REIT, Raffles Medical Group, Haw Par Corporation and Trendlines. Together the five stocks averaged a 7.2% decline in total return, with a total of S$10.20 million in turnover for the period, almost double their S$5.75 million combined turnover in 2019.
</body></html>





The Smartkarma Insight 2020 healthcare sector implications of COVID-19 panel discussed a renewed healthcare infrastructure drive by developed countries, localisation of healthcare supply chains yet need for global biopharma collaborations, and more frontline technology adoption. 
	 
	
Over the first five months of 2020, pandemic management across the globe has been the defining driver of the Healthcare Sector by a long mile, particularly in developed countries. This coincided with ASEAN healthcare stocks, traditional outperformers, lagging their regional &amp; global peers.  
	 
	Singapore healthcare stocks that bucked median declines across ASEAN in 2020 YTD with soaring participation included Medtecs Intl Corp, Biolidics, Clearbridge, Riverstone and UG Healthcare. Together, the five averaged 140% gains, with a 30-fold increase in turnover from 2019.

Traditionally more secular than cyclical, Healthcare Sectors across the world have been both laden and lauded in 2020 and are poised for significant transition and transformation in the years ahead. While longevity and population growth have been key regional healthcare drivers of the past, pandemic mamangment is now set to play a key role in re-shaping potential drivers for the key sector. 

For the 2020 year to 22 May, Healthcare stocks in ASEAN have been comparatively defensive when comparing median returns to benchmarks. However, the median total returns have lagged the relatively flat returns of healthcare stocks listed globally and across Asia Pacific.



      
    
    Median Total Return 


Longer term, the past 10 years of regional longevity, population growth and burgeoning consumer markets have seen healthcare stocks in ASEAN and Asia Pacific outpace their global peers based on median total returns. However the demands of pandemic management on multiple countries less prepared for the pandemic with healthcare services and products has seen more mixed stock returns over the past five months.

Long-term Healthcare Sector Implications of COVID-19 with Smartkarma

Last week, the Smartkarma Insight 2020 Asia-focused digital investment conference provided a panel session focused on the long-term healthcare Implications of COVID-19. Key themes established during the Healthcare panel (click here) included:



Need for adjustment to the new operating environment. The need for prudent management of operational costs, maintaining adequate capitalisation and cash flows while closely monitoring and adapting to risks. This is clearly important to any business, however considerable demands on the Healthcare Sector over the past five months, and the need to take opportunities when they arise, have poised this as a key driver. Kemp Dolliver, CIO at Cherrystone Hill Capital Management noted momentum in Asia Healthcare primary listings, secondary listings and mergers and acquisitions have continued into 2020. 
	 
	
Potential for a Healthcare Infrastructure Drive in the Development World - Ewan Davis, Director of Quadria Capital noted that the COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted a lack of access to care and fundamental lack of infrastructure and technology to test and manage outbreaks in multiple developed markets, and a call-to-arms for government and consumers alike to make sure healthcare infrastructure is amended with new services, products and channels of engagement.  
	 
	
More localisation of healthcare supply chains. Mr Davis also noted that while not specific to Healthcare, the supply chain shock of COVID-19 has seen this acceleration of the need for healthcare supply chain to localise. Mr Davis noted there had been a pre-existing drive to localise production of medical devices and pharmaceuticals and incorporation of more technology transfer, however this has evolved to an imperative. Mr Lim See Wah, Chairman &amp; CEO of Hyphens Pharma also noted that in time the industry would expect to see a return to equilibrium between localisation and globalisation, as companies would balance costs and risks. 
	 
	
Global biopharma collaborations - While governments look to localise, Mr Dolliver noted regional biopharma companies that are producing globally competitive products approved in local markets after significant years of research and development will still need to license out, and form partnerships with global multinational corporations in order to achieve global distribution scale. 
	 
	
Greater technology adoption - Jonathan Sudharta, CEO &amp; Co-Founder of Halodoc, highlighted that the Healthcare Sector has become more comfortable with using technology in frontline and diagnostic services which is expected to see significant impacts on triage services. Mr Lim See Wah also added that COVID-19 is a catalyst for accelerating technology adoption by the Sector and that overall digitalisation can play a key role in increasing efficient delivery of healthcare services.

 Singapore Healthcare Stocks with Surges in Performance and Participation in 2020 YTD

As noted above, median total returns of Singapore and ASEAN healthcare stocks have lagged the relatively flat returns of healthcare stocks listed globally and across Asia Pacific in the 2020 year to 22 May. However a number of stocks have outpaced the group base with products and services more relevant to pandemic management.

Singapore healthcare stocks that have delivered gains, with a surge in participation in the stock as gauged by average daily turnover included Medtecs International Corporation, Biolidics, Clearbridge, Riverstone Holdings, and UG Healthcare. With average total returns of 139.9%, together the five stocks averaged S$16.73 million in daily turnover for the 2020 year through to 22 May, compared to their combined average daily turnover of $0.52 million in 2019.

Detailed in the table below, all five stocks were amongst the 100 most traded stocks by turnover in the 2020 year through to 22 May.




			Most Actively Traded Healthcare stocks in 2020 to 22 May
			
			
			SGX Code
			
			
			Mkt Cap S$M
			
			
			2020 to 22 May  Average Daily Turnover S$M
			
			
			2019 Average Daily Turnover S$M
			
			
			2020 to 22 May Total Return %
			
			
			Price to Book Ratio (x)
			
		


			Medtecs Intl Corp
			
			
			546
			
			
			          97.25
			
			
			6.85
			
			
			0.03
			
			
			378.4
			
			
			1.1
			
		


			Biolidics
			
			
			8YY
			
			
			          98.94
			
			
			3.47
			
			
			0.03
			
			
			55.1
			
			
			11.9
			
		


			Clearbridge
			
			
			1H3
			
			
			        106.12
			
			
			2.90
			
			
			0.28
			
			
			28.3
			
			
			2.0
			
		


			Riverstone Holdings
			
			
			AP4
			
			
			     1,385.83
			
			
			2.02
			
			
			0.16
			
			
			102.2
			
			
			5.4
			
		


			UG Healthcare
			
			
			41A
			
			
			          64.71
			
			
			1.50
			
			
			0.01
			
			
			135.7
			
			
			1.5
			
		


			Average
			
			
			 
			
			
			 
			
			
			 
			
			
			 
			
			
			139.9
			
			
			4.4
			
		

Source: SGX, Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters  (Data as of 22 May 2020). Note Riverstone Holdings is listed on the Mainboard, with the remaining four stocks listed on Catalist

Note, other Healthcare-related stocks that were also amongst the 100 most traded stocks by turnover in the 2020 year to 22 May included ParkwayLife REIT, First REIT, Raffles Medical Group, Haw Par Corporation and Trendlines. Together the five stocks averaged a 7.2% decline in total return, with a total of S$10.20 million in turnover for the period, almost double their S$5.75 million combined turnover in 2019.



New Drivers for the Global Healthcare Industry in 2020 and Beyond

Independent Asian Credit Research, Bondcritic

Warut Promboon

Independent Asian Credit Research

Asian Fixed Income/Frontier Market Research

Bondcritic

Bondcritic, established in 2009, is designed to be an independent credit research voice that helps investors gain insights and unbiased analyses on Asian fixed income market. Our mission is to discover deep-value Asian high-yield and distressed bonds with a bottom-up approach, together with the help of our proprietary ESG (Environmental, Social Development, and Governance) model. At the same time, we focus on bringing investment cases of unrated and unloved issuers to the general public.

Credit

We initiate our coverage of <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/thomson-medical-group-limited" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8495:1" rel="noopener">Thomson Medical Group Limited (ROWS SP)</a> (TMG). The acquisition of a profitable Thomson Medical Centre (TMC) together with <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tmc-life-sciences-bhd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12066:1" rel="noopener">Tmc Life Sciences (TMCL MK)</a> (TMCLS) by Rowsley Ltd. in 1Q’18 has changed the fortune and checkered past of Rowsley, in our view. With the divestment of its loss-making real estate investments in January 2019 and name changed to TMG, TMG is now a pure healthcare play on a clean slate.TMG’s strength lies in TMC/TMLCS as one of Asia’s largest healthcare players with a focus in the Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology (O&amp;G) markets in Singapore and Malaysia. Revenue drivers going forward include (1) its premier private hospital status in Singapore, (2) TMSCL’s expansion in Kuala Lumpur, and (3) the new hospital development in Johor Bharu.We see the first driver as a cash cow on TMC’s focus on oncology and preventive health as the next pillar of growth in the medical industry. COVID-19 patients could have further complication due to diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart problems. Thus, we expect preventive healthcare to grow in importance whether or not COVID-19 stays with us. We see the latter two drivers as promising in Malaysia’s much larger market (compared to Singapore) with the triple expansion of capacity at Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara near Kuala Lumpur to generate revenue by 2021, and the potential to draw Singaporeans to visit hospital facilities in Johor Bharu when the facility will be completed in 2026. We like the long-term prospect but are cautious in the next 2-3 years as capex for the Malaysian projects can worsen the liquidity situation at TMG. Our base-case scenario calls for patients worldwide to be postponing non-essential medical procedures and even parenthood that could reduce TMG’s revenue growth, to say the least.TMG’s balance sheet is highly levered stemming from the side effect of the acquisition which, in our view, encouraged management to maximize return on shareholders’ equity for the publicly-listed stocks with additional leverage. We expect its liquidity and EBITDA to just sufficiently cover its cash outflow and would see additional capital injection as credit-positive in the future.Overall, we like TMG’s leveraged growth story but believe the story is geared to benefit shareholders more than bondholders. Clearly, Rowsley’s management realized the potential of TMC’s cashflow, and decided to maximize shareholders’ value through borrowing. As far as bondholders are concerned, this is about balancing liquidity risk with recurring revenue. In our judgment, its debt level would put the group in the “B“ category had it not been for its recurring revenue in the healthcare industry. We believe the bonds are fully-valued versus peers and see limited upside in the near term while we do not recommend selling either as we believe the TMGSP complex still offers a fair carry for its recurring cashflow . As such, we assign a NEUTRAL recommendation on the TMGSP complex.

We initiate our coverage of Thomson Medical Group Limited (ROWS SP) (TMG). The acquisition of a profitable Thomson Medical Centre (TMC) together with Tmc Life Sciences (TMCL MK) (TMCLS) by Rowsley Ltd. in 1Q’18 has changed the fortune and checkered past of Rowsley, in our view. With the divestment of its loss-making real estate investments in January 2019 and name changed to TMG, TMG is now a pure healthcare play on a clean slate.TMG’s strength lies in TMC/TMLCS as one of Asia’s largest healthcare players with a focus in the Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology (O&amp;G) markets in Singapore and Malaysia. Revenue drivers going forward include (1) its premier private hospital status in Singapore, (2) TMSCL’s expansion in Kuala Lumpur, and (3) the new hospital development in Johor Bharu.We see the first driver as a cash cow on TMC’s focus on oncology and preventive health as the next pillar of growth in the medical industry. COVID-19 patients could have further complication due to diabetes, high blood pressure, or heart problems. Thus, we expect preventive healthcare to grow in importance whether or not COVID-19 stays with us. We see the latter two drivers as promising in Malaysia’s much larger market (compared to Singapore) with the triple expansion of capacity at Thomson Hospital Kota Damansara near Kuala Lumpur to generate revenue by 2021, and the potential to draw Singaporeans to visit hospital facilities in Johor Bharu when the facility will be completed in 2026. We like the long-term prospect but are cautious in the next 2-3 years as capex for the Malaysian projects can worsen the liquidity situation at TMG. Our base-case scenario calls for patients worldwide to be postponing non-essential medical procedures and even parenthood that could reduce TMG’s revenue growth, to say the least.TMG’s balance sheet is highly levered stemming from the side effect of the acquisition which, in our view, encouraged management to maximize return on shareholders’ equity for the publicly-listed stocks with additional leverage. We expect its liquidity and EBITDA to just sufficiently cover its cash outflow and would see additional capital injection as credit-positive in the future.Overall, we like TMG’s leveraged growth story but believe the story is geared to benefit shareholders more than bondholders. Clearly, Rowsley’s management realized the potential of TMC’s cashflow, and decided to maximize shareholders’ value through borrowing. As far as bondholders are concerned, this is about balancing liquidity risk with recurring revenue. In our judgment, its debt level would put the group in the “B“ category had it not been for its recurring revenue in the healthcare industry. We believe the bonds are fully-valued versus peers and see limited upside in the near term while we do not recommend selling either as we believe the TMGSP complex still offers a fair carry for its recurring cashflow . As such, we assign a NEUTRAL recommendation on the TMGSP complex.

Thomson Medical Group: Medicated by Leverage

Scotts Miracle-Gro Co Cl A / Equity Bottom-Up

<figure>
 <img src='https://api2.sgx.com/sites/default/files/2020-05/SMG-CEO.jpg' alt='SMG-CEO' />
 </figure>
 <div class='content-caption'>SMG-CEO</div>
<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40/loose.dtd">
<html><body>
For medical entrepreneur Dr Beng Teck Liang, taking the road less travelled nearly two decades ago has made a difference - and a serendipitous one at that. 
The scion of an urologist, Beng began his career as a Medical Officer with Singapore's Ministry of Health in 1996, after graduating from the UK's University of Manchester Medical School. 
"Although I was trained as a doctor, I wanted something more, so I decided to take a different path from my peers, and move from medicine to business," said the Chief Executive Officer of SGX-listed healthcare services provider Singapore Medical Group Ltd (SMG). 
So he retooled himself with a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business and a General Management Programme from Harvard Business School. 
After spending the next decade managing multi-billion dollar businesses in information technology and healthcare across Asia Pacific for multinational corporations Hewlett-Packard and General Electric, Beng was ready once again to steer in a new direction. 
"I wanted to build something for myself. And when my partners and I saw the opportunity with SMG at that time, we decided to go for it," he recalled. "We launched a takeover and general offer for the company in 2013, and the rest is, undoubtedly, a beautiful history." 
However, the milestones that SMG achieved in the succeeding seven years did not come easy - hard decisions and sleepless nights were inevitable. 
"SMG had seen better days - its reputation was marred by controversy, business was shrinking, and we were months away from going broke. The stakes were really high at the time," Beng recalled. 
"We had to reorganise teams, cut costs, retrench or fire staff, before we could grow again. During the first year, I was constantly asking myself, What did I get myself into? Am I really going to make this work?" 
Determination and discipline, as well as biting not one, but several bullets, eventually yielded results. "We managed to turn around, slowly but surely, and looking back now, there's a tremendous sense of satisfaction," he added. 
And the proof, as they say, is in the pudding: For the year ended 31 December 2019, SMG reported a 11.3% year-over-year jump in revenue to a record S$94.7 million, driven by growth across all business segments. 
Operating cash flows rose to S$25.7 million for the year from S$16.8 million in FY2018. 
Today, SMG has a market capitalisation of more than S$120 million, up six-fold from its value of about S$20 million before the takeover. 
Incorporated in 2005 and listed on Singapore Exchange since 2009, SMG is a private specialist healthcare provider, with a comprehensive range of multidisciplinary specialties and an extensive network of Specialist and Associate doctors in clinics across Singapore. 
SMG's practices can be found in both central and suburban locations, including Paragon Medical Centre, Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, Gleneagles Medical Centre, Mount Alvernia Medical Centre, as well as Bishan, Bedok, Toa Payoh and Punggol. Its specialties include Aesthetics, Cardiology, Dentistry, Medical Oncology, Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology, Paediatrics, as well as Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery. Unswerving Focus 
Right from the start, Beng's vision for SMG was crystal-clear: Export the Singapore brand of healthcare - which is well-loved and well-respected in the region - beyond domestic shores. 
"Apart from the biggest players in this space, like Parkway Pantai and Raffles Medical Group, there are no small and medium companies who have a significant pan-Asian presence." 
SMG aims to change that. Today, it has an expanding footprint in Indonesia, a network of clinics in Vietnam, and a robust in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) business in Australia. "We were ahead of our peers in terms of taking that leap and targeting the markets, which are traditional sources of medical tourists in the region," Beng said. 
"Singapore's share of the region's medical tourism pie has been declining - we knew it would end at some point - so our goal was to bring the best-quality healthcare over to these countries. And I think we have made a lot of progress in achieving that." 
Apart from its regional footprint, the Group has also differentiated itself from competitors through its diversification strategy. "Our specialties cut across five verticals - cancer, aesthetics, paediatrics, diagnostics, as well as obstetrics and gynaecology - and we're a significant player in each vertical." 
SMG has also established a wide network of clinics across the city-state - of its 36 clinics, more than two-thirds are in the heartlands. It is incubating other businesses, while some potential verticals, like dental and ophthamology, have yet to grow to a significant size, Beng added. 
In partnership with South Korean healthcare group CHA Health Systems, SMG will actively pursue projects in Vietnam, Singapore, Oceania and other key Pacific Rim markets to address burgeoning demand for fertility services, as the region's birth rates continue to decline. 
The Group will also leverage CHA's expertise in anti-ageing care, as well as Korea's dermatology and aesthetics know-how, to boost its lead in various specialties, including oncology. 
"The CHA-SMG partnership is expected to lay the foundation for Asia-Pacific's first dedicated platform for comprehensive wellness care, spanning the anti-ageing, beauty and preventive care spectrums," he noted. 
Last year, an international unit of CHA invested S$50 million in SMG, raising its stake to 24.04% and becoming the Group's controlling shareholder. Silver Lining 
These days, what keeps the 48-year-old awake in the wee hours is none other than the COVID-19 outbreak. "This virtual enemy has complicated our previously simple growth strategy, which revolved around how fast we could expand, which markets to venture into, and which partners we should bring on board," he said. 
Lockdowns across the region have prevented ASEAN patients from carrying out their normal clinic visits. "COVID-19 will definitely impact us - about 20% to 30% of our business comes from ASEAN." 
Thankfully, there is a silver lining. "We unveiled our telehealth business at the beginning of last year, and are starting to reap the benefits of that," he noted. Patients can seek specialist care via tele-consultation through SMG's HiDoc platform, which is easily accessed via a mobile app or website. 
"We see huge opportunities in this space as medical tourism grinds to a halt from the pandemic." 
Looking back, Beng attributes SMG's success to key decisions made seven years ago, one of them being a "Buy and Grow" strategy. "Acquisitions helped us scale up and provided a catalyst for growth. Our verticals doubled or tripled in size after we came across opportunities to acquire clinics, and acted quickly," he said. 
"But we've never rested on our laurels - we're always mindful that we still need to maintain organic growth within our networks by opening new clinics and adding specialists." 
Between 2015 and 2019, SMG added more than 20 specialists to its fold, reflecting an 85% increase to 48 from 26. The pool has been expanding every year, largely through acquisitions of medical practices and the hiring of specialists from the public healthcare sector. 
At the end of the day, ushering SMG into its next phase of growth - and on the global stage, no less - is what keeps this father of two boys, aged 12 and 15, going. 
What's exciting is the fact that the Group has the opportunity to change how healthcare is perceived and delivered, both in this region and beyond, said Beng. 
"We're one of the biggest movers and shakers in the healthcare space now, because of the track record we've established over the last seven years," he pointed out. 
"SMG is part of a global collaborative platform that's growing, not just in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific, but in North Asia, and also further afield in the US and elsewhere." Singapore Medical Group Ltd 
Incorporated in 2005 and listed on SGX since 2009, Singapore Medical Group (SMG) is a private specialist healthcare provider with a comprehensive range of multidisciplinary specialties, and an extensive network of Specialist and Associate doctors located in clinics across Singapore. 
SMG's practices can be found at Paragon Medical Centre, Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, Novena Medical Center, OUE Downtown Gallery, Gleneagles Medical Centre, Farrer Park Medical Centre@Connexion, and Mount Alvernia Medical Centre. Suburban locations include Bishan, Bedok, Toa Payoh and Punggol. Its specialties include Aesthetics, Cardiology, Dentistry, Medical Oncology, Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology, Paediatrics, as well as Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery. 
The company website is: <a href="http://edm.sgx.com/a/hBetL0iB86%24MfB91z9HAAPJbdH7/link8">www.smg.sg</a>.

Click <a href="http://edm.sgx.com/a/hBetL0iB86%24MfB91z9HAAPJbdH7/link9">here</a> for the company's StockFacts page. 
For the full year ended 31 December 2019 financial results, click <a href="http://edm.sgx.com/a/hBetL0iB86%24MfB91z9HAAPJbdH7/link10">here</a>.
</body></html>


      
    
    SMG-CEO


For medical entrepreneur Dr Beng Teck Liang, taking the road less travelled nearly two decades ago has made a difference - and a serendipitous one at that.  
The scion of an urologist, Beng began his career as a Medical Officer with Singapore's Ministry of Health in 1996, after graduating from the UK's University of Manchester Medical School.  
"Although I was trained as a doctor, I wanted something more, so I decided to take a different path from my peers, and move from medicine to business," said the Chief Executive Officer of SGX-listed healthcare services provider Singapore Medical Group Ltd (SMG).  
So he retooled himself with a Master's in Business Administration from the University of Chicago's Booth School of Business and a General Management Programme from Harvard Business School.  
After spending the next decade managing multi-billion dollar businesses in information technology and healthcare across Asia Pacific for multinational corporations Hewlett-Packard and General Electric, Beng was ready once again to steer in a new direction.  
"I wanted to build something for myself. And when my partners and I saw the opportunity with SMG at that time, we decided to go for it," he recalled. "We launched a takeover and general offer for the company in 2013, and the rest is, undoubtedly, a beautiful history."  
However, the milestones that SMG achieved in the succeeding seven years did not come easy - hard decisions and sleepless nights were inevitable.  
"SMG had seen better days - its reputation was marred by controversy, business was shrinking, and we were months away from going broke. The stakes were really high at the time," Beng recalled.  
"We had to reorganise teams, cut costs, retrench or fire staff, before we could grow again. During the first year, I was constantly asking myself, What did I get myself into? Am I really going to make this work?"  
Determination and discipline, as well as biting not one, but several bullets, eventually yielded results. "We managed to turn around, slowly but surely, and looking back now, there's a tremendous sense of satisfaction," he added.  
And the proof, as they say, is in the pudding: For the year ended 31 December 2019, SMG reported a 11.3% year-over-year jump in revenue to a record S$94.7 million, driven by growth across all business segments. 
Operating cash flows rose to S$25.7 million for the year from S$16.8 million in FY2018.  
Today, SMG has a market capitalisation of more than S$120 million, up six-fold from its value of about S$20 million before the takeover.  
Incorporated in 2005 and listed on Singapore Exchange since 2009, SMG is a private specialist healthcare provider, with a comprehensive range of multidisciplinary specialties and an extensive network of Specialist and Associate doctors in clinics across Singapore.  
SMG's practices can be found in both central and suburban locations, including Paragon Medical Centre, Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, Gleneagles Medical Centre, Mount Alvernia Medical Centre, as well as Bishan, Bedok, Toa Payoh and Punggol. Its specialties include Aesthetics, Cardiology, Dentistry, Medical Oncology, Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology, Paediatrics, as well as Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery.  Unswerving Focus  
Right from the start, Beng's vision for SMG was crystal-clear: Export the Singapore brand of healthcare - which is well-loved and well-respected in the region - beyond domestic shores.  
"Apart from the biggest players in this space, like Parkway Pantai and Raffles Medical Group, there are no small and medium companies who have a significant pan-Asian presence."  
SMG aims to change that. Today, it has an expanding footprint in Indonesia, a network of clinics in Vietnam, and a robust in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) business in Australia. "We were ahead of our peers in terms of taking that leap and targeting the markets, which are traditional sources of medical tourists in the region," Beng said.  
"Singapore's share of the region's medical tourism pie has been declining - we knew it would end at some point - so our goal was to bring the best-quality healthcare over to these countries. And I think we have made a lot of progress in achieving that."  
Apart from its regional footprint, the Group has also differentiated itself from competitors through its diversification strategy. "Our specialties cut across five verticals - cancer, aesthetics, paediatrics, diagnostics, as well as obstetrics and gynaecology - and we're a significant player in each vertical."  
SMG has also established a wide network of clinics across the city-state - of its 36 clinics, more than two-thirds are in the heartlands. It is incubating other businesses, while some potential verticals, like dental and ophthamology, have yet to grow to a significant size, Beng added.  
In partnership with South Korean healthcare group CHA Health Systems, SMG will actively pursue projects in Vietnam, Singapore, Oceania and other key Pacific Rim markets to address burgeoning demand for fertility services, as the region's birth rates continue to decline.  
The Group will also leverage CHA's expertise in anti-ageing care, as well as Korea's dermatology and aesthetics know-how, to boost its lead in various specialties, including oncology.  
"The CHA-SMG partnership is expected to lay the foundation for Asia-Pacific's first dedicated platform for comprehensive wellness care, spanning the anti-ageing, beauty and preventive care spectrums," he noted.  
Last year, an international unit of CHA invested S$50 million in SMG, raising its stake to 24.04% and becoming the Group's controlling shareholder.  Silver Lining  
These days, what keeps the 48-year-old awake in the wee hours is none other than the COVID-19 outbreak. "This virtual enemy has complicated our previously simple growth strategy, which revolved around how fast we could expand, which markets to venture into, and which partners we should bring on board," he said.  
Lockdowns across the region have prevented ASEAN patients from carrying out their normal clinic visits. "COVID-19 will definitely impact us - about 20% to 30% of our business comes from ASEAN."  
Thankfully, there is a silver lining. "We unveiled our telehealth business at the beginning of last year, and are starting to reap the benefits of that," he noted. Patients can seek specialist care via tele-consultation through SMG's HiDoc platform, which is easily accessed via a mobile app or website.  
"We see huge opportunities in this space as medical tourism grinds to a halt from the pandemic."  
Looking back, Beng attributes SMG's success to key decisions made seven years ago, one of them being a "Buy and Grow" strategy. "Acquisitions helped us scale up and provided a catalyst for growth. Our verticals doubled or tripled in size after we came across opportunities to acquire clinics, and acted quickly," he said.  
"But we've never rested on our laurels - we're always mindful that we still need to maintain organic growth within our networks by opening new clinics and adding specialists."  
Between 2015 and 2019, SMG added more than 20 specialists to its fold, reflecting an 85% increase to 48 from 26. The pool has been expanding every year, largely through acquisitions of medical practices and the hiring of specialists from the public healthcare sector.  
At the end of the day, ushering SMG into its next phase of growth - and on the global stage, no less - is what keeps this father of two boys, aged 12 and 15, going.  
What's exciting is the fact that the Group has the opportunity to change how healthcare is perceived and delivered, both in this region and beyond, said Beng.  
"We're one of the biggest movers and shakers in the healthcare space now, because of the track record we've established over the last seven years," he pointed out.  
"SMG is part of a global collaborative platform that's growing, not just in Southeast Asia and the South Pacific, but in North Asia, and also further afield in the US and elsewhere."  Singapore Medical Group Ltd  
Incorporated in 2005 and listed on SGX since 2009, Singapore Medical Group (SMG) is a private specialist healthcare provider with a comprehensive range of multidisciplinary specialties, and an extensive network of Specialist and Associate doctors located in clinics across Singapore.  
SMG's practices can be found at Paragon Medical Centre, Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre, Novena Medical Center, OUE Downtown Gallery, Gleneagles Medical Centre, Farrer Park Medical Centre@Connexion, and Mount Alvernia Medical Centre. Suburban locations include Bishan, Bedok, Toa Payoh and Punggol. Its specialties include Aesthetics, Cardiology, Dentistry, Medical Oncology, Obstetrics &amp; Gynaecology, Paediatrics, as well as Plastic and Reconstruction Surgery.  
The company website is: www.smg.sg.

Click here for the company's StockFacts page.  
For the full year ended 31 December 2019 financial results, click here.



Singapore Medical Group Eyes Global Stage

IPOs and Catalysts/Events, Global Equity Research Ltd

Arun George

IPOs and Catalysts/Events

Uncompromised, Independent, Conflict-Free Research

Global Equity Research Ltd

Global Equity Research was started in 2017 by a group of experienced research professionals. It was founded on a passionate belief in the importance and the need for uncompromised, independent, conflict-free research. We aim to provide differentiated and actionable primary and bottom up fundamental research.

Event-Driven

Bumrungrad Hospital Pub Co / Event-Driven

<a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bumrungrad-hospital-pub-co" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:883:1" rel="noopener">Bumrungrad Hospital Pub Co (BH TB)</a> is one of the leading healthcare providers in Thailand and the Southeast Asian region. On 26 February, BH received an unsolicited voluntary tender offer from <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bangkok-dusit-med-service" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:875:1" rel="noopener">Bangkok Dusit Med Service (BDMS TB)</a>, its largest shareholder. The tender offer is at THB125 cash per share or a higher price of not more than 20% of the offering price. The final tender price will be announced after the four conditions precedent is met or waived. <div class="content-highlight">Crucially, the launch of a tender offer at a modest premium is a sensible way to test if the further acquisition of shares would pass the scrutiny of the Thai merger control provisions, in our view. The tender offer is intended to shake out the marginal holder rather than have a broad-based appeal. Consequently barring a market rally, we don’t think that BDMS has much incentive to materially increase its tender price from its opening gambit. </div>

Bumrungrad Hospital Pub Co (BH TB) is one of the leading healthcare providers in Thailand and the Southeast Asian region. On 26 February, BH received an unsolicited voluntary tender offer from Bangkok Dusit Med Service (BDMS TB), its largest shareholder. The tender offer is at THB125 cash per share or a higher price of not more than 20% of the offering price. The final tender price will be announced after the four conditions precedent is met or waived. Crucially, the launch of a tender offer at a modest premium is a sensible way to test if the further acquisition of shares would pass the scrutiny of the Thai merger control provisions, in our view. The tender offer is intended to shake out the marginal holder rather than have a broad-based appeal. Consequently barring a market rally, we don’t think that BDMS has much incentive to materially increase its tender price from its opening gambit. 

Bumrungrad Hospital’s Tender Offer from Bangkok Dusit

Singapore

Raffles Medical Group Limited is a health care provider.  The Company operates medical clinics, imaging centers, and medical laboratories.  Raffles provides general and specialized medical, medical evacuation, medical advisory, and dental treatment services.

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Raffles Medical Group (RFMD SP)

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Thomson Medical Group: Medicated by Leverage

We initiate our coverage of Thomson Medical Group Limited (ROWS SP) (TMG). The acquisition of a profitable Thomson Medical Centre (TMC) together...

Bondcritic

Singapore Medical Group Eyes Global Stage

For medical entrepreneur Dr Beng Teck Liang, taking the road less travelled nearly two decades ago has made a difference - and...

Singapore Exchange Ltd (SGX)

Bumrungrad Hospital’s Tender Offer from Bangkok Dusit

Bumrungrad Hospital Pub Co (BH TB) is one of the leading healthcare providers in Thailand and the Southeast Asian region. On 26 February, BH...

Arun George

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