Singapore has lived from trade since 1819. Find out what the port and the trade agreements offer, how to stay on the right side of sanctions, and how to enforce your contracts when a counterparty does not pay.
The port handled a record 44.66 million TEU in 2025 and sold 56.77 million tonnes of bunker fuel. Singapore has 29 implemented free trade agreements, among them RCEP, the CPTPP and agreements with China, the EU, the EFTA states, the United Kingdom and the Gulf Cooperation Council. Contracts are written in English under a common law of contract.
The entrepôt of the nineteenth century already ran on these foundations, on credit passed from house to house. Read Origins: From Temasek to the Free Port, in particular The infrastructure of the entrepôt.
Singapore implements United Nations sanctions under the United Nations Act 2001, and in March 2022 it added its own measures against Russia. It does not adopt United States, European Union or United Kingdom sanctions as such, while its financial institutions take them into account in practice (Singapore's approach to sanctions, OFAC and the commercial reality).
When a counterparty does not pay, you can look to SIAC arbitration under the 2025 Rules, the Singapore International Commercial Court, the Singapore Convention on Mediation and the Hague Choice of Court Convention. The book sections use token disputes as their examples, and the framework they explain is general: The legal framework, Interim remedies, Dispute resolution clauses between the hubs.
Commodity Trading
Singapore was founded as a trading port. The articles collected here follow the entrepôt economy of the nineteenth century: the junk trade from the southern Chinese ports, Bugis, Arab, Indian and European traders, country traders and the opium economy, gambier and pepper, the agency house as intermediary, and the credit chains that held it all together. They also compare the entrepôt with Geneva. Part G of the book, on the commodity trading hub of today, is still to come. To the articlesTrade Finance
Trade finance is the oldest financial business of the port. The articles collected here explain how the agency houses of the nineteenth century discounted bills, how credit ran from Lancashire through Singapore to the archipelago, how the planters of gambier and pepper were financed, and how the river and the godowns supported it. Part H of the book, on trade finance, fraud and risk today, is still to come. To the articlesSanctions and Export Control
Singapore implements United Nations sanctions and has made one exception to its usual restraint. The articles collected here explain the United Nations Act 2001 and the regulations under it, the Russia measures of March 2022, the commercial reach of OFAC, screening practice, proliferation financing and the position of the lawyer. Export control and the trade side are not yet treated on this site. To the articlesAML and Compliance
Singapore applies a broad regime against money laundering and terrorist financing. The articles collected here explain the three statutes on which it rests, the MAS notices, the enterprise-wide risk assessment, customer due diligence, the travel rule and the duty to report suspicious transactions. They also cover the money-laundering case of August 2023, sanctions, governance and inspections, and the running of one programme across a group. The examples come from digital payment token services, and much of the framework applies to financial institutions generally. To the articlesLitigation and Arbitration
Singapore offers courts, arbitration and mediation for international disputes. The articles collected here explain the General Division of the High Court and the Singapore International Commercial Court, the International Arbitration Act 1994 and SIAC, mediation, freezing orders and tracing, insolvency, and the enforcement of awards and judgments. Their examples come from digital asset disputes, and much of the procedure is general. The colonial courts and the Privy Council appear in the financial centre book. To the articlesDigital Assets: Singapore VI: Enforcement, Insolvency and Dispute Resolution
Singapore VI: Enforcement, Insolvency and Dispute Resolution — a part of the book Digital Assets Law in Singapore and Switzerland by Dr Alexander Ressos. To the articlesSingapore: Origins: From Temasek to the Free Port
Origins: From Temasek to the Free Port — a part of the book Singapore as an International Financial Centre by Dr Alexander Ressos. To the articles