06.30.2025

SGX Group’s Loh Boon Chye Stresses Transparency, Honesty, Integrity

06.30.2025
SGX Group’s Loh Boon Chye Stresses Transparency, Honesty, Integrity

Loh Boon Chye joined Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) as Chief Executive Officer in July 2015. In his role he drives SGX Group’s growth strategy, with the aim of transforming SGX Group into a world-class multi-asset exchange.

Mr. Loh won CEO of the Year at Markets Media Group’s 2025 Global Markets Choice Awards. Markets Media caught up with Mr. Loh following the awards event to learn more.

Loh Boon Chye, SGX

What was your reaction to winning CEO of the Year?

It was unexpected and a great surprise. I consider the award a reflection of the SGX Group organization and my colleagues, and how we have progressed over the years.

What have been some recent accomplishments and initiatives at SGX Group, and how are you moving the organization forward?

Geopolitical activities are taking place in real time. But I think what is different is that events like the global financial crisis or the Asian financial crisis in 1997 are not likely scenarios, and market participants are able to manage risk or invest for gains. 

We see intense competition, in the cash equity market and elsewhere. For us, one asset class that has stood out globally has been commodities – like foreign exchange, commodities are highly traded and they are a global barometer. Our journey to pivot into a multi-asset exchange that provides investors with access to Asian economies has come a long way, and having different asset classes to allow real-time risk management has positioned SGX Group well for the years ahead.

How would you describe your management style?

Personally, I strive for transparency, honesty and integrity, and these are the values and the behavior that we expect from our colleagues at SGX Group. 

I try to inculcate a mindset of making a difference, making an impact. It’s important to think about outcomes, and the best outcomes come from transparency, collaboration and honesty. Accountability is important – we need to accept honest mistakes and know that nobody is perfect. Lastly, I ask a lot of questions. I may be the CEO, but in meetings I’m usually the one who has the most questions.

What are the main challenges of being CEO, and how do you navigate through difficult times?

It can be lonely at the top, so one challenge is to find, develop and equip a team that I work well with, with team members who support me, and we see each other as partners and as peers.  

Management, including myself, needs to develop and lead strategy, but there’s also a need to get the Board to be part of the journey, while also providing the necessary checks and balances and course-correcting if need be.

How do you work to advance not just SGX Group, but also the broader industry?

Exchange groups have evolved and are very different from 20 years ago. An exchange is part of the market ecosystem and it’s important to enable ecosystem engagement and ecosystem collaboration. We do this collectively at SGX Group, through regulatory engagement on behalf of the industry and through collaborating with important industry associations, such as the Futures Industry Association (FIA) and the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE). These groups are where platforms can work together to forge common goals and develop a better and more forward-looking market ecosystem.

Another area is climate change and sustainability. SGX is part of the CEO Principals Group of the Glasgow Financial Alliance for Net Zero (GFANZ), which is mobilizing capital towards climate action. Investors need to have a framework index benchmark to adhere to their fiduciary duties, but also take care of the climate risks in their portfolio and climate change that impact economies or society broadly. 

Also, I was Chair of the Singapore Foreign Exchange Market Committee, which is one of the most significant such committees along with the one of the New York Fed. That came in handy many years ago during the Asian financial crisis, when you needed platforms to bring different parties with different viewpoints together to try and forge the best outcome for all.

What is your longer-term vision for SGX Group?

We want to be even more globally relevant, with a more active and meaningful influence in the market ecosystem. The launch of Brazilian Real FX futures, in collaboration with the Brazilian exchange B3, is one example of what we’re doing to evolve beyond Asia to be more relevant globally. Another anchor has been commodities, in particular iron ore which has been Asia’s first global commodity and a benchmark and a barometer for urbanization, not just for China but also for Latin America and Australia.

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