“The Singapore Chinese Orchestra will soon enjoy bigger reserves and greater say over the use of its funds,” writes Huang Lijie in Monday’s (12/23) Straits Times (Singapore; subscription required). “This change comes as its almost $10-million trust fund created by the Tote Board in 1996 is being dissolved and merged with the group’s endowment fund…. Unlike a trust fund, which is governed by conditions prescribed by the donors, an endowment fund is typically made up of direct donations and wholly managed by the organization itself. For the SCO, the transfer … will grow the capital sum under its control to about $40 million.… This move by the SCO follows in the footsteps of the Singapore Symphonia Company, which was recently successful in its appeal to the High Court to dissolve a similar trust for the Singapore Symphony Orchestra. … The 2008 financial crisis caused the trust value to dip below $25 million, sparking a deficit for the SSO…. The SCO’s general manager, Terence Ho, 44, says: ‘It will help us build up our reserves through strategic investments and give us more flexibility when it comes to budgeting for … long-term growth.” The 82-member SCO was formed in 1997 and performs Chinese and Western classical music under Music Director Tsung Yeh.
Posted December 24, 2013
