Singaporean companies are keen to step up investment in a range of sectors in Bangladesh including port infrastructure, airport management, digital economy, urban planning and healthcare. The Bay Terminal project at Chattogram port alone could draw as much as $1 billion.
Talks are also underway on a free trade agreement (FTA) to strengthen trade and investment ties, with both countries expecting to conclude the deal within the next year.
Singapore’s FDI stock in Asia is vast; in Bangladesh it remains modest by comparison. According to Singapore’s statistics agency SingStat, Singapore’s FDI stock in Asia stood at 866 billion Singapore dollar (SGD) at the end of 2024, a figure those involved say is now approaching SGD 1 trillion.
Singapore’s investment stock in Bangladesh was a little over SGD 3 billion at the end of 2024, at an exchange rate of BDT 96.43 to the Singapore dollar. Even so, officials and investors see ample scope to broaden what remains a marginal presence.
Those involved say Bangladesh has invited Singaporean investors at various times, but the government has not taken effective measures in response. Political and economic instability may also weigh on investors’ decisions. The outcome, they argue, is that while commercial ties and economic cooperation have considerable room to grow, that potential is not being converted into investment at the expected level.
Philip Ong, chargé d’affaires at Singapore’s High Commission in Dhaka, told Bonik Barta: “In 2025, trade in goods between Singapore and Bangladesh totalled SGD 3.9 billion, making Bangladesh Singapore’s second-largest trading partner in South Asia. Singapore is also a sizeable investor in Bangladesh, with foreign direct investment amounting to just over SGD 3 billion in 2024.”
Singaporean firms Sembcorp, PSA International, Surbana Jurong and Singapore Airlines have a firm presence in Bangladesh’s economy, he said, and are interested in expanding further. “The Bay Terminal project is a major area of interest for Singaporean investors, with the estimated investment potentially ranging between $800 million and $1 billion.”
He said Bay Terminal was an “important step” towards modernising Bangladesh’s trade infrastructure and expanding port capacity, adding: “Improved port efficiency would help reduce demurrage costs and shipping delays, generating significant savings for exporters and importers while making Bangladesh more attractive for future foreign direct investment.”
Under the Bay Terminal scheme, the Public-Private Partnership Authority envisages a breakwater of about 11 kilometres, dredging work, a multipurpose terminal and two container terminals. The project is still at the development stage and is expected to cost more than $2 billion.
Beyond port infrastructure, Singapore sees partnership potential in the digital economy, urban planning, infrastructure development and healthcare.
“We remain committed to strengthening economic cooperation through increased investment, trade diversification, collaboration on food security, and support for green and sustainable industries,” Philip Ong said.
Airport management is another area of interest. According to May figures from the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Tourism, Singapore-based Crimsonlogic and Enterprise Singapore have shown interest in modernising the Advance Passenger Information System (APIS) and revenue management from aircraft movements. The potential for public-private partnership in tourism is also under discussion.
Power and energy are among the most substantial areas of Singaporean investment in Bangladesh. A 414 MW gas-fired plant in Sirajganj operates under a joint venture, 71 percent of which is owned by Sembcorp. The plant is run by Sembcorp North-West Power Company Limited and began commercial generation in 2019.
Singaporean institutions also have a presence in financial services. DBS Bank opened a representative office in Dhaka in 2023, though such an office’s operations do not count as direct foreign investment in banking.
Bangladesh Bank data put cumulative Singaporean FDI in Bangladesh at $2.44 billion through June 2026. Power and energy take the largest share, at $1.13 billion, followed by telecommunications at $234.94 million, textiles and apparel at $220.5 million, and agriculture and fisheries at $154.51 million. Banking accounts for $7.02 million.
Singapore’s investment in Bangladesh also lags behind its holdings in several neighbouring countries. SingStat data for the end of 2024 put Singapore’s FDI stock at SGD 12.26 billion in India and SGD 10.42 billion in Indonesia, underscoring how much scope remains to deepen the two countries’ investment ties.
Singaporean firms are also widely invested across Asia. Singapore Airlines flies international routes to Bangladesh and holds aviation interests elsewhere in the region; its 25.1 percent stake in Air India Group took shape in 2024 after Vistara was merged into the carrier. In Indonesia, Sembcorp and PLN Nusantara Power launched a project in the Nusantara region in 2025, combining 50 MW of solar generation with 14.2 MWh of battery storage.
Overseas employment and remittances have made Singapore important to Bangladesh in another way. Bangladesh Bank’s country-by-country figures show remittances of $1.49 billion from Singapore in the 2025–26 fiscal year, 52.4 percent more than a year earlier, making it the eighth-largest source of the country’s remittance inflows.
Diplomatic relations between the two countries will reach the 55-year mark in 2027, and economists and diplomatic analysts point to long-standing commercial ties, the employment of Bangladeshis in Singapore and the steady flow of remittances as the foundations of the economic relationship.
But the gap between that potential and Singapore’s current investment in Bangladesh is equally clear. The priorities now are to turn interest in infrastructure such as Bay Terminal and the modernisation of airport management into workable projects, to keep government channels to investors effective and to reduce political and economic uncertainty. An FTA, if its terms can be settled and implemented, would create further scope to expand trade and investment.
Sources said the third round of negotiations on the proposed free trade agreement had concluded. After a meeting in Singapore on August 11 between Shama Obaed Islam, Bangladesh’s state minister for foreign affairs, and Singaporean foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan, both sides said they hoped to complete the deal quickly. The talks also stressed closer business-to-business contact to expand trade, investment and economic cooperation.
Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry later named Bangladesh, on September 30, as a partner with which FTA discussions are underway.
According to Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry, an FTA would offer market access in goods and services, tariff concessions, and a more predictable environment for investors. The terms of the Bangladesh-Singapore agreement have yet to be finalised, however, so it is not yet possible to say which Bangladeshi products would receive what tariff relief, or what specific benefits would be created for investment. Once concluded, the deal could improve trade facilitation and market access while strengthening the climate for long-term investment by Singaporean firms in Bangladesh.
Source: https://en.bonikbarta.com
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