Pan-Electric Industries was a Singapore-based company that specialised in marine salvage work, and had 71 subsidiary companies, including hotel and property interests, with a market capitalization of S$230 million.[1][2] The company collapsed in December 1985[3] due to massive unsettled forward contracts, forcing the Stock Exchange of Singapore (SES) and Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (KLSE) to shut down for three days.[4][5] At its demise, the company had a total debt of S$480 million, and all its shares held by 5,500 shareholders were found to be worthless overnight. As of 2000, it remains the largest corporate collapse in Singapore's history, and the only instance where the SES had to be unexpectedly closed.[1]
In the aftermath of the collapse, key people in the company such as Peter Tham, Tan Kok Liang, and Tan Koon Swan were prosecuted and given varying jail sentences. The collapse of the company shook public confidence in the SES, causing prices of stocks to plunge and resulted in the bankruptcy of some stockbroking firms.[6] New securities laws were introduced in March 1986 to ensure that stockbroking firms could protect themselves against credit risks.[1][7]
References
edit- ^ a b c National Heritage Board (Singapore) (2006). "Pan-El crisis". In Tommy T.B. Koh; et al. (eds.). Singapore: The Encyclopedia. Singapore: Editions Didier Millet. p. 402. ISBN 981-4155-63-2.
- ^ Pan-Electric Liquidation, The New York Times, February 7, 1986.
- ^ "The Pan-Electric crisis hits the stock market - Singapore History". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. Retrieved 2022-05-25.
- ^ "Trading halt causes crisis in Singapore". The Globe and Mail. 3 December 1985. p. B15.
- ^ Ahmad, Zakaria Haji (1986). "Malaysia in 1985: The Beginnings of Sagas". Asian Survey. 26 (2). University of California Press: 150–7. doi:10.2307/2644450. ISSN 1533-838X. JSTOR 2644450.
- ^ "Remembering the Pan-Electric crisis, nearly 40 years on". sal.org.sg. Singapore Academy of Law. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
- ^ "Case Study on Pan-Electric Crisis, MAS Staff Paper No.32, June 2004" (PDF). Monetary Authority of Singapore. July 2004. Retrieved 28 December 2022.
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