Act of Parliament · 1985 Revised Edition
Moneylenders Act
Feedback & supportRegulation of money-lendingOfficial textFrom Singapore Statutes Online, unchanged
s 1Short title
This Act may be cited as the Moneylenders Act.
s 2Interpretation
In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —“authorised name” and “authorised address” mean respectively the name under which and the address at which a moneylender is authorised by a licence granted under this Act to carry on business as a moneylender;“company” means any body corporate being a moneylender;“firm” means an unincorporated body of two or more individuals, or one or more individuals and one or more corporations, or two or more corporations, who have entered into partnership with one another with a view to carrying on business for profit;“interest” does not include any sum lawfully charged in accordance with the provisions of this Act by a moneylender for or on account of stamp duties, fees payable by law and legal costs but, save as aforesaid, includes any amount by whatsoever name called in excess of the principal paid or payable to a moneylender in consideration of or otherwise in respect of a loan;“licence” means a moneylender’s licence issued under this Act;“moneylender” includes every person whose business is that of moneylending or who carries on or advertises or announces himself or holds himself out in any way as carrying on that business whether or not that person also possesses or earns property or money derived from sources other than the lending of money and whether or not that person carries on the business as a principal or as an agent but does not include —
any body corporate, incorporated or empowered by a special Act of Parliament or by any other Act to lend money in accordance with that Act;
any society registered under the Cooperative Societies Act [Cap. 62];
any person bona fide carrying on the business of banking or insurance or bona fide carrying on any business not having for its primary object the lending of money in the course of which and for the purposes whereof he lends money;
any pawnbroker licensed under the provisions of any written law in force in Singapore relating to the licensing of pawnbrokers; and
any finance company licensed under the Finance Companies Act [Cap. 108]. “principal”, in relation to a loan, means the amount actually lent to and received by the borrower;“Registrar” means the Registrar of Moneylenders appointed under this Act and includes an Assistant Registrar.
“authorised name” and “authorised address” mean respectively the name under which and the address at which a moneylender is authorised by a licence granted under this Act to carry on business as a moneylender;
“company” means any body corporate being a moneylender;
“firm” means an unincorporated body of two or more individuals, or one or more individuals and one or more corporations, or two or more corporations, who have entered into partnership with one another with a view to carrying on business for profit;
“interest” does not include any sum lawfully charged in accordance with the provisions of this Act by a moneylender for or on account of stamp duties, fees payable by law and legal costs but, save as aforesaid, includes any amount by whatsoever name called in excess of the principal paid or payable to a moneylender in consideration of or otherwise in respect of a loan;
“licence” means a moneylender’s licence issued under this Act;
“moneylender” includes every person whose business is that of moneylending or who carries on or advertises or announces himself or holds himself out in any way as carrying on that business whether or not that person also possesses or earns property or money derived from sources other than the lending of money and whether or not that person carries on the business as a principal or as an agent but does not include —
any body corporate, incorporated or empowered by a special Act of Parliament or by any other Act to lend money in accordance with that Act;
any society registered under the Cooperative Societies Act [Cap. 62];
any person bona fide carrying on the business of banking or insurance or bona fide carrying on any business not having for its primary object the lending of money in the course of which and for the purposes whereof he lends money;
any pawnbroker licensed under the provisions of any written law in force in Singapore relating to the licensing of pawnbrokers; and
any finance company licensed under the Finance Companies Act [Cap. 108].
“principal”, in relation to a loan, means the amount actually lent to and received by the borrower;
“Registrar” means the Registrar of Moneylenders appointed under this Act and includes an Assistant Registrar.
s 3Certain persons and firms presumed to be moneylenders
Save as excepted in paragraphs (a) to (e) of the definition of “moneylender” in section 2, any person who lends a sum of money in consideration of a larger sum being repaid shall be presumed until the contrary is proved to be a moneylender.
s 4Appointment of Registrars
The Minister may appoint any public officer to be the Registrar of Moneylenders under this Act and may also appoint as many public officers as he may think fit to be Assistant Registrars of Moneylenders.
Every moneylender residing and carrying on the business of moneylending in Singapore whether as principal or as agent shall take out a licence annually.
A licence shall be taken out in respect of each name under which moneylending business is conducted. No licence shall be granted to a person not ordinarily resident in Singapore or to a firm where the person proposed to be responsible for the management of the firm is not ordinarily resident in Singapore.
A licence taken out by a person as a partner in a firm shall be deemed to be a licence to the firm, and every other partner actively conducting in Singapore the moneylending business of that firm shall be subject to the provisions of this Act in like manner as if he had himself taken out the licence and shall be deemed to hold a licence.
Licences shall be substantially in such form as the Minister may direct and shall be granted, on payment of the prescribed fee, by the Registrar or an Assistant Registrar or by officers authorised by either of them.
Every licence shall come into operation on the date specified therein and shall be valid for a period of 12 months.
Every licence granted to a moneylender shall show his true name and the name under which, and the address at which, he is authorised by the licence to carry on business as such, and in the case of an agent in addition the true name of the principal, whether an individual or a firm, on whose behalf the business is carried on. A licence shall not authorise a moneylender to carry on business at more than one address or under more than one name or under any name which includes the word “bank” or otherwise implies that he carries on the business of banking, and no licence shall authorise a moneylender to carry on business under any name except —
his true name or in the case of an agent the true name of the principal on whose behalf the agent carries on business;
the name of a firm in which he is a partner or of which he is an agent; or
a business name, whether of an individual or of a firm in which he is a partner or of which he is an agent, under which he or the firm or in the case of an agent his principal has been registered under the Business Registration Act [Cap. 32].
Any licence taken out in a name other than the moneylender’s true name shall be void.
The Registrar shall from time to time cause to be published in the Gazette a list of all persons licensed under this Act, and shall also cause to be so published any addition to or alteration in the list.
Every such printed list purporting to be published as aforesaid shall be evidence in all courts that the persons therein specified are licensed according to the provisions of this Act; and the absence of the name of any person from that printed list shall be evidence, unless the contrary is shown, that that person is not licensed according to the provisions of this Act.
If any person —
takes out a licence in any name other than his true name;
carries on business as a moneylender without holding a licence or, being licensed as a moneylender, carries on business as such in any name other than his authorised name or at any place other than his authorised address or addresses; or
in the course of business as a moneylender enters as principal or agent into any agreement with respect to any advance or repayment of money or takes any security for money otherwise than in his authorised name,he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $5,000 and for a second or subsequent offence to a fine or not exceeding $5,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both and an offender being a company shall for a second or subsequent offence be liable to a fine not exceeding $10,000:Provided that a moneylender who is not, or in the case of a firm none of the partners of which are, ordinarily resident in Singapore may without being guilty thereby of an offence carry on business in Singapore without holding a licence if he carries on the business solely through an agent duly licensed under this Act to carry on such business in Singapore under the name of that moneylender.
A licence shall not be refused except on one or more of the following grounds:
that satisfactory evidence has not been produced of the good character of the applicant and, in the case of a company or of a firm, of the persons responsible for the management thereof;
that satisfactory evidence has been produced that the applicant or any person responsible or proposed to be responsible for the management of his business as a moneylender is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence;
that the applicant or any person responsible or proposed to be responsible for the management of his business as a moneylender is by order of a court disqualified from holding a licence;
that the applicant has not complied with section 5 with respect to applications for licences;
that the applicant or his firm has after the commencement of this Act knowingly lent money to a person under the age of 21 years;
that the applicant, or any partner, director or other person who is or will be responsible for the management of the firm, is below the age of 21 years:Provided that where an application is made by any person for a licence to carry on business as an agent for a principal the licence may also be refused on one or more of the following grounds:
that satisfactory evidence has not been produced of the good character of the principal and, where the principal is a firm, of the persons responsible for the management thereof;
that satisfactory evidence has been produced that the principal is not a fit and proper person to carry on the business of moneylending;
that the principal or any present or former agent of the principal is by an order of a court disqualified from holding a licence;
that the principal or any present or former agent of the principal has knowingly lent money to a person under the age of 21 years.
Any person aggrieved by the refusal of a licensing officer to grant a licence may appeal to the Minister in such manner as the Minister may, by rules, prescribe and the decision of the Minister shall be final.
The Registrar may by order revoke a licence if he is satisfied —
that the holder of the licence —
has ceased to carry on the business of a moneylender or, if the licensee being a company, goes into liquidation or is wound up or otherwise dissolved; or
is no longer a fit and proper person to continue to hold the licence; or
that the holder of the licence, or, if he is a partner of a firm or is a company, any person responsible for the management of the firm or company —
has been convicted of any offence involving dishonesty or moral turpitude;
is carrying on or has carried on the business of a moneylender in such a manner as renders him unfit to continue to hold the licence;
is contravening or has contravened the provisions of this Act ; or
has been convicted of any offence under this Act or the rules made thereunder.
The Registrar shall, before revoking any licence under subsection (1), give the person concerned notice in writing of his intention to do so, specifying a date, not less than 21 days after the date of the notice, upon which the revocation shall take effect and calling upon the person concerned to show cause to the Registrar why the licence should not be revoked .
Where the Registrar has revoked a licence under subsection (1), he shall forthwith inform the person concerned by notice in writing of the revocation .
The person whose licence has been revoked may, within 14 days after the date of the notice referred to in subsection (3), or such extended period of time as the Minister may allow, appeal in writing against the revocation to the Minister whose decision shall be final.
An order of revocation shall not take effect until the expiration of a period of 14 days after the Registrar has informed the licensee concerned of the order.
If within that period the licensee concerned gives due notice of appeal to the Minister, the order shall not take effect unless the order is confirmed by the Minister or the appeal is for any reason dismissed by the Minister or is withdrawn.
An order of revocation made under this section shall not affect any moneylending transaction entered into before the order is made.
s 11Names to be stated on documents issued by moneylenders
A moneylender shall not for the purpose of the business carried on by him as such issue or publish or cause to be issued or published any advertisement, circular, business letter or other document which does not show, in such manner as to be not less conspicuous than any other name, the authorised name of the moneylender, and any moneylender who acts in contravention of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $500 in respect of the offence.
s 12No circular implying a banking business to be issued
If a moneylender for the purpose of the business carried on by him as such issues or publishes or causes to be issued or published any advertisement, circular or document of any kind whatsoever containing expressions which might reasonably be held to imply that he carries on the business of banking, he shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $1,000 and for a second or subsequent offence to a fine not exceeding $1,000 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12 months or to both and an offender being a company shall for a second or subsequent offence be liable to a fine not exceeding $5,000.
No person shall knowingly send or deliver or cause to be sent or delivered, to any person, except in response to his written request any circular or other document advertising the name, address or telephone number of a moneylender or containing an invitation —
to borrow money from a moneylender;
to enter into any transaction involving the borrowing of money from a moneylender; or
to apply to any place with a view to obtaining information or advice as to borrowing any money from a moneylender.
Subject to this section, no person shall publish, or cause to be published, in any newspaper or other printed paper issued periodically for public circulation or by means of any poster or placard, an advertisement advertising any such particulars or containing any such invitation as aforesaid:Provided that an advertisement in conformity with the requirements of this Act relating to the use of names on moneylenders’ documents may be published by or on behalf of a moneylender in any newspaper or in any such paper as aforesaid or by means of a poster or placard exhibited at any authorised address of the moneylender if it contains no addition to the particulars necessary to comply with those requirements except any of the following particulars:
any authorised address at which he carries on business as a moneylender and the telegraphic address and telephone number thereof;
any address at which he formerly carried on business;
a statement that he lends money with or without security and of the highest and lowest sums that he is prepared to lend; or
a statement of the date on which the business carried on by him was first established.
No moneylender or any person on his behalf shall employ any agent or canvasser for the purpose of inviting any person to borrow money or to enter into any transaction involving the borrowing of money from a moneylender and no person shall act as such agent or canvasser or demand or receive, directly or indirectly, any sum or other valuable consideration by way of commission or otherwise for introducing or undertaking to introduce to a moneylender any person desiring to borrow money.
Where any document issued or published by or on behalf of a moneylender purports to indicate the terms of interest upon which he is willing to make loans or any particular loan, the document shall either express the interest proposed in terms of a rate per cent per annum or per month.
Any person acting in contravention of any of the provisions of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall in respect of each offence be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $500 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 6 months or to both.
Every person licensed as a moneylender under the provisions of this Act shall affix in a conspicuous position outside his authorised address a board bearing the authorised name and the authorised address of the business and the words “Licensed Moneylender” in Malay, English, Chinese and Tamil distinctly printed in letters not less than 5 centimetres high.
Any person who fails to comply with subsection (1) shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on conviction to a fine not exceeding $50.
s 15Contract by unlicensed moneylender unenforceable
No contract for the repayment of money lent by an unlicensed moneylender shall be enforceable:Provided that money lent on behalf of a principal through an agent who is licensed under the provisions of this Act to carry on the business of moneylending on behalf of that principal shall be deemed to have been lent by a licensed moneylender.