Singapore is reclaiming physical gold and reinforcing its safe-haven appeal as Asia’s wealthiest expand allocations into both precious metals and newer asset classes. Alvin Lee, CEO of Maybank Singapore, said high-net-worth clients are buying gold while younger heirs push into digital assets, and that large quantities of bullion are moving from Dubai to Singapore.
Lee framed the trend as part of a broader transfer of wealth from older to younger generations. “Ultra-high-net-worth people are always looking at both financial instruments as well as physical assets in real estate and in precious metal,” he said. He added, “increasingly, we do see the wealthy being very open to new asset classes, whether it’s digital assets or cryptocurrencies,” and that the interest is coming primarily from younger people.
Gold remains a central anchor in that allocation shift. Lee described gold as “a good store of value.” The metal traded around $4,400 per ounce earlier this year and, despite retreating from record highs, sits at elevated levels historically. The article notes Goldman Sachs expects gold to reach $4,900 by year-end, a forecast Lee used to underline continued demand for the metal among Asia’s richest.
Lee said the recent Middle East conflict has helped redirect offshore wealth back to Singapore. “So with the Middle East conflict, a lot of money that left Singapore for Dubai is returning,” he said, and added that physical gold is being shipped to Singapore from Dubai in historically outsized quantities. He argued Singapore benefits from those flows because of its safe-haven status, strong intellectual property protections, a stable government, and an attractive tax regime.
Alongside asset diversification, Lee said wealthy Chinese are increasingly buying real estate in Malaysia for both personal use and business needs. He named Kuala Lumpur, Malacca, and Penang as beneficiaries of that buying. The Hurun Global Rich List published in March shows China leads the world in billionaire count with 1,110 individuals, surpassing the U.S. at 1,000, a backdrop that helps explain the scale of cross-border property and investment activity Lee described.
Lee concluded that Singapore will remain attractive to offshore wealth, while Malaysia’s relative valuations make it a growing destination for wealthy Chinese seeking property and business relocation. Those shifts underscore a simultaneous move toward traditional stores of value and newer digital investments among Asia’s elite.
