Statute Details
- Title: Trustees (Authorised Unit Trusts) (Consolidation) Order
- Act Code: TA1967-OR1
- Type: Subsidiary legislation (SL)
- Authorising Act: Trustees Act (Chapter 337), Section 86
- Citation: Trustees (Authorised Unit Trusts) (Consolidation) Order
- Legislative History / Revised Edition: 1 April 1995 (1995 RevEd)
- Status (as provided): Current version as at 27 Mar 2026
- Key Provisions: Section 1 (Citation); Section 2 (Authorised unit trust schemes)
What Is This Legislation About?
The Trustees (Authorised Unit Trusts) (Consolidation) Order is a Singapore subsidiary legal instrument that performs a narrow but important function: it authorises specific unit trust schemes for the purposes of the Trustees Act. In practical terms, the Order identifies which collective investment schemes are treated as “authorised” under the Trustees Act framework, enabling trustees and related market participants to rely on the statutory authorisation status when administering or dealing with those schemes.
Although the Order is short, its legal effect can be significant. In many trustee and trust-related regimes, “authorised” status is not merely a label—it can determine whether certain statutory protections, permissions, or compliance pathways apply. By consolidating earlier authorisations, the Order provides legal certainty and reduces the need to consult multiple earlier instruments for the list of authorised schemes.
The scope of the Order is therefore primarily identificatory and regulatory-administrative. It does not, in the extract provided, set out detailed operational rules for unit trust management, investor rights, or distribution mechanics. Instead, it establishes which named unit trust schemes are authorised for the Act’s purposes, thereby linking those schemes to the legal consequences contemplated by the Trustees Act.
What Are the Key Provisions?
Section 1 (Citation) is the standard citation provision. It confirms the short title by which the Order may be referred to in legal documents, correspondence, and court or regulatory proceedings. While this is not substantive law, it is still important for practitioners because it ensures correct referencing and avoids ambiguity when citing the instrument.
Section 2 (Authorised unit trust schemes) is the core provision. It states that “the following unit trust schemes are authorised for the purposes of the Act” and then lists the schemes by name. This is the mechanism by which the Trustees Act’s authorisation requirement (or authorisation-dependent provisions) is satisfied for particular unit trust products.
From a practitioner’s perspective, the key legal takeaway is that authorisation is scheme-specific. The Order does not authorise “unit trusts generally” or authorise categories based on investment strategy. Instead, it authorises named schemes. Accordingly, if a unit trust scheme is not listed in Section 2, it will not enjoy the authorisation status conferred by this Order, and any trustee-related reliance on the Trustees Act authorisation framework may be unavailable or may require separate authorisation.
The extract lists fifteen authorised schemes. They are:
- The Singapore Growth Fund
- The Union Singapore Fund
- The Unifund
- The Japan Growth Fund
- The Mendaki Growth Fund
- The Shenton Emerging Capital Fund
- The Shenton Growth Fund
- The Shenton Income Fund
- The Malaysia Growth Fund
- The Credit Lyonnais Asia Pacific Growth Fund
- The Savers China Growth Fund
- The US Growth Fund
- Morgan Grenfell Asia Premier Trust
- The Savers AsPac Recovery Fund
- The Savers Global Deed Fund
Each item in the list is accompanied by bracketed references indicating the earlier authorising instruments and dates (for example, “[S 242/84]” and similar). These annotations are legally useful because they show that the consolidation reflects earlier authorisations and amendments. For practitioners, this matters in two ways: (1) it helps trace the legislative history and (2) it may assist when assessing whether a scheme’s authorisation was originally granted at a particular time or under a particular regulatory context.
Although the extract does not reproduce the full text of the Trustees Act, the structure strongly suggests that Section 86 of the Trustees Act empowers the relevant authority to authorise unit trust schemes by order. The Order then operationalises that power by listing the schemes. In other words, the Order is the authorisation instrument, while the Trustees Act is the enabling statute that determines the legal consequences of authorisation.
How Is This Legislation Structured?
The Order is extremely concise and is structured around two sections:
- Section 1 (Citation): provides the short title.
- Section 2 (Authorised unit trust schemes): contains the substantive list of authorised schemes.
There are no additional parts, schedules, or complex subsections in the extract provided. The legislative drafting approach is consistent with a consolidation order: it consolidates earlier authorisations into a single, current reference document. The presence of legislative history annotations and the “current version as at 27 Mar 2026” status indicates that the legal database maintains the consolidated list even as the underlying authorising instruments may have been issued at different times.
Who Does This Legislation Apply To?
This Order applies to parties whose activities are governed by the Trustees Act in relation to authorised unit trust schemes. In practical terms, that typically includes trustees and other persons who administer trusts or manage trust property that may include investments in unit trust schemes. It may also be relevant to legal advisers, compliance officers, and investment administrators who need to confirm whether a particular unit trust scheme is authorised under the Trustees Act framework.
Because the Order authorises specific schemes by name, its applicability is indirect but consequential. It does not regulate investors directly in the way a prospectus or securities law might. Instead, it affects the legal status of the schemes for trustee-related purposes. Therefore, the “who” is best understood as those who must determine whether a unit trust scheme qualifies as authorised for the purposes of the Trustees Act.
Why Is This Legislation Important?
Even though the Order is short, it can be crucial in legal practice. Many trustee and trust administration questions turn on whether an investment is permitted or treated in a particular way under statute. Where the Trustees Act provides a mechanism that depends on “authorised” status, the list in Section 2 becomes a threshold compliance check. A practitioner advising a trustee, a trust company, or an administrator will often need to confirm that the relevant unit trust scheme is indeed authorised.
From a risk management perspective, relying on an unauthorised scheme could create compliance exposure, including potential breaches of statutory duties or failures to follow investment constraints. Conversely, confirming authorisation can support defensible decision-making and documentation—particularly where trustees must demonstrate that they acted prudently and within the scope of statutory authority.
Additionally, the consolidation aspect reduces administrative burden. Instead of consulting multiple earlier subsidiary instruments, practitioners can refer to a single consolidated order to obtain the current list of authorised schemes. This is especially valuable when advising on older trusts, legacy investments, or historical transactions where the relevant authorisation may have been granted decades earlier.
Finally, the legislative history annotations (showing earlier S-number instruments and dates) are important for legal research and due diligence. They can help counsel determine when authorisation was first granted and whether any changes occurred over time. While the extract does not show deletions or amendments, the presence of a “current version” suggests that the list is maintained and updated through the legislative process.
Related Legislation
- Trustees Act (Chapter 337), Section 86 (enabling provision for authorising unit trust schemes)
- Trustees (Authorised Unit Trusts) (Consolidation) Order (this Order; consolidated list of authorised schemes)
Source Documents
This article provides an overview of the Trustees (Authorised Unit Trusts) (Consolidation) Order for legal research and educational purposes. It does not constitute legal advice. Readers should consult the official text for authoritative provisions.