Prospectus is too complicated

Dear Mr Tan

I think one of the key contentious point in this whole saga is that we should have read the prospectus for the issue ourselves to assess whether the product is suitable for us or not.

But the problem is the way the prospectus had been written. There's simply too much technical jargon for us to understand all the contents written in it. Although we have a responsibility to read it, is it actually reasonable for laymen like us to understand it? Because of this complexity, we have to depend on the integrity and expertise of the RMs or the bank officers selling the product to advise us properly on the risks. There must be a fundamental change in the way these prospectus are written so that the general public can understand them.

I believe the MAS has a duty to oversee this especially if the issue is to be offered to the general public for subscription. I am not an expert on how this can be done but surely they can tell if a prospectus has been written for a targeted audience or general public? If former, then the issue should not be allowed to be sold to the general public. If latter, then the prospectus must be written in a way that the general public can understand it. After all, the general public are not financial gurus.

I think the MAS has the duty to prevent such products from flooding the retail market by "testing" the suitability of the prospectus for digestion by the general public.

Thanks, KK

REPLY
I hope that the Government will investigate the following:

2.1 Was there any fraudulent intent in the creation of these products? Were the products created with the aim of defrauding the investing public? Were the drafting of the prospectus, advertisements and other documents carried out with the intent of hiding the true facts from the investing public? Were the lawyers and other professionals involved in this activity?