LSEG: Singapore investment banking fees hit $864.6M in 2025

Investment banking fees in Singapore reached an estimated $864.6 million in 2025, driven by increased M&A, equity, and debt capital market activity, according to data from the London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG).

LSEG’s Singapore Investment Banking Review showed that an estimated $864.6 million worth of investment banking fees have been generated in Singapore in 2025, a 28.9% increase compared to the same period last year and highest annual total since 2021.

Advisory fees earned from completed mergers and acquisitions (M&A) transactions amounted to $265.1 million, up 55.3% compared to 2024. Equity capital markets underwriting fees totaled $210.9 million, more than doubling in value from a year ago, and a four-year high. Debt capital markets fees grew 55.9% to $155.2 million, the highest total since our records began. Syndicated lending fees saw a 24.1% decline to $233.4 million from a year ago.

DBS Group Holdings is the top fee earner in Singapore’s investment banking fee league table in 2025 with a total of $72.9 million, taking an 8.4% wallet share of the total fee pool.

M&A involving Singapore reached a total of $70.4 billion during the full year of 2025, a 9.1% decrease in value compared to last year. Similarly, the number of announced deals declined by 22.1% from last year to a decade low. At least 15 deals exceeding $1 billion were announced during the year, amounting to a combined value of $27.8 billion. A majority of these large deals were announced earlier in the year, with just one deal over $1 billion announced in Q4.

Target Singapore M&A rose to $26.9 billion, an 8.4% increase compared to 2024. Domestic M&A activity reached $7.8 billion, down 6.7% compared to a year ago. Inbound M&A saw a growth of 16.0% from a year ago, totaling $19.2 billion, while outbound M&A fell to a decade low, down by 7.2% year-on-year to $22.6 billion.

From a sector perspective, energy and power was the most targeted industry involving Singapore by value, capturing 17.4% market share worth $12.2 billion, double in value from last year. Real estate followed with 14.5% market share as dealmaking totaled $10.3 billion, down 4.2% from 2024. High technology rounded out the top three sectors with 14.0% market share amounting to $9.8 billion, a 37.6% increase year-on-year (YoY).

UBS topped the any Singaporean involvement announced M&A league tables with related transactions amounting to $8.3 billion, capturing an 11.8% market share.

Singapore equity and equity-related activity slowed down in the fourth quarter of 2025, raising $1.7 billion, a 33.2% decline from the previous quarter. Despite this dip, the total equity capital markets (ECM) proceeds in 2025 reached $7.4 billion, more than double the amount raised during 2024 and the best annual total since 2021. The number of issues also rose by 66.7% compared to the same period last year.

A total of 38 initial public offerings (IPOs) by Singaporean companies were issued this year, raising $2.5 billion – a sixteen-fold increase in proceeds compared to last year. The number of IPOs also surged, rising 123.5% YoY. Of these, 27 IPOs were listed offshore (two in Hong Kong and 25 in the US) raising a combined total of $662.1 million. Meanwhile, 11 issuers chose to list on the local bourse, generating $1.9 billion in proceeds.

Singaporean issuers from the real estate sector accounted for 42.7% of the ECM proceeds and raised $3.2 billion in 2025, bolstered by capital raising from real estate investment trusts (REITs). The high technology sector followed with 33.2% market share, raising $2.5 billion, while healthcare contributed 10.4% of the total proceeds.

DBS Group Holdings took the top position in the Singapore-domiciled equity, equity-linked underwriting league table for the full year 2025, with $983.6 million in related proceeds.

Primary bond offerings from Singapore-domiciled issuers reached a total $41.3 billion in 2025, up 30.5% in proceeds compared to the last year, and an annual total only exceeded once since our records began in 1980.

Singaporean issuers from the financials sector dominated the market, capturing 64.8% of the market share and raising $26.7 billion, a 47.5% increase YoY. This is bolstered by large bank issuances, including several from DBS Bank and United Overseas Bank. Government and agencies accounted for 17.4% of the market with proceeds of $7.2 billion, down 0.6% from the same period in 2024. Meanwhile, real estate raised $1.9 billion, a 27.1% growth from a year ago, representing 4.6% of the total market share.

DBS Group took the lead in the Singapore-domiciled bonds underwriting league table with $5.4 billion in related proceeds, capturing 13.2% market share.

Re-disseminated by Wealth and Society