Private club 1880 Singapore suddenly closes, no funds to pay staff and suppliers; Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow talks COE system and other transport challenges: Singapore live news

Yahoo

17-06-2025

Singapore private club 1880 suddenly announced on Tuesday (17 June) that it would permanently close, with its holding company 38 Degrees and operating company 1880 Pte Ltd placed into provisional liquidation.
According to CNA, which has seen a copy of the email, there were some insights provided into the closure of the business. "Spend and frequency per visit of our members has been trending down. The company needed an injection and some efficiency optimisation," the email read.
Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow said there will be no major tweaks to the certificate of entitlement (COE) system in the short term. Instead, the focus now is on ensuring that all vehicles are equipped with on-board units (OBUs) for the next-generation Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system.
On 11 June, Siow explained to reporters, "The reality is there won't be space for every Singaporean to own a car in Singapore." Hence, the COE is the government's way of allocating this "scarce good".
Read more in our live blog below, including the latest local and international news and updates.
Singapore private club 1880 suddenly announced on Tuesday (17 June) that it would permanently close, with its holding company 38 Degrees and operating company 1880 Pte Ltd placed into provisional liquidation.
Singaporean entrepreneur, Chris J Reed, shared a screenshot of the email on his LinkedIn account on Tuesday. However, aside from the closure announcement, the screenshot only said that details about the liquidation process and creditors meeting will be "forthcoming".
According to CNA, which has seen a copy of the email, there were some insights provided into the closure of the business. "Spend and frequency per visit of our members has been trending down. The company needed an injection and some efficiency optimisation," the email read.
"We had three offers to invest in or acquire 1880. Anyone of these would have restored us to health and given a runway to building a global brand. We were however, unsuccessful in getting those offers over the line. With no further funds to pay our staff or suppliers, we have no alternative but to close."
CNA reported that the email alluded to expansion as a reason for the failure.
"We created a brand that earned a reputation that brought opportunities for expansion that I could not resist," the email stated.
The club is located in Robertson Quay, and was founded by Marc Nicholson. It opened in late 2017. As of Monday, the club was still open to members and actively promoting on its social media account.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by 1880 Singapore (@1880singapore)
For more on the Singapore private club 1880 closing, read here.
New private home sales in Singapore have dropped to a five-month low in May amid global tariff tensions. According to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Monday (16 June), developer sales dropped for a third consecutive month and there were only 312 units bought last month.
Developers have grown more cautious amid Trump's tariffs and the slowed economic outlook for Singapore in the first quarter of 2025. There were no major launches in May – a factor that affected sales figures as well.
The market's sluggish performance is expected to continue into June, typically a slow month due to school holidays. One project in the east sold fewer than 10 per cent of its 107 freehold units during its launch weekend earlier this month.
For more on the slowing private home sales in Singapore, read here.
Second-generation actress Tay Ying got hitched on Sunday (15 June) night to celebrity chef Wu Sihan at Orchard Hotel. Incidentally, this was the same venue where her parents, celebrities Hong Huifang and Zheng Geping, married 32 years ago.
And yes, the choice was intentional, according to Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao.
Tay Ying shared the news of her wedding on Instagram on 16 June, and wrote, "We had the perfect wedding thanks to so many people. While we take our time to absorb everything that happened this weekend, here are some snippets of Day 2 of our wedding last night."
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tay Ying 郑颖 (@tayying_)
The actress shared four photos from the night of the wedding, including a photo where she was accompanied by her father, and uncle and godfather, Hong Weiwen. The latter is the younger brother of her mother.
The wedding was held at Orchard Hotel Singapore with 72 tables and about 700 guests.
The guests included Christopher Lee and his wife Fann Wong, Yvonne Lim and her family, Florence Tan, Vincent Ng, Cassandra See, Chen Xiuhuan, Xiang Yun, Aileen Tan, Jin Yinji, Huang Biren, Tang Miaoling, Cherie Lim, Chen Tianwen, Chen Hanwei, Richard Low and Lin Ruping.
Also on the guest list were younger artistes such as Elvin Ng, Romeo Tan, Rebecca Lim, Chantalle Ng, Desmond Tan, Hong Ling and her husband Nick Teo, as well as Denise Camillia Tan and Xixi Lim.
For more on Tay Ying's wedding, read here.
Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow said there will be no major tweaks to the certificate of entitlement (COE) system in the short term. Instead, the focus now is on ensuring that all vehicles are equipped with on-board units (OBUs) for the next-generation Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system.
On 11 June, Siow explained to reporters, "The reality is there won't be space for every Singaporean to own a car in Singapore." Hence, the COE is the government's way of allocating this "scarce good".
Siow also doesn't think that private-hire cars have driven up COE premiums. He said, "If we didn't have private-hire cars today, actually the reverse would be true, that a large number of these people will feel that they need to buy a car, and then... they will bid the price of the COE up."
He also noted that the economics of a private-hire car are "much more efficient", pointing out that if a COE allocation would be better for a car that can be shared among a larger group of Singaporeans over a private car owner who drives his car twice a day only.
Siow was also asked about private-hire driver hours. This was in light of the tragic death of 49-year-old driver Gavin Neo from a stroke, whom friends said often spent up to 15 hours behind the wheel to provide for his teenage son and daughter.
The acting minister said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) does not regulate the number of hours that private-hire drivers should be on the road, and the unions have not called for such regulations either, as different drivers have different needs.
The LTA will step in if accident rates for private-hire vehicles are much higher than private vehicles, but this has not been the case.
Siow also said the question is whether ride-hailing platform Grab's incentive scheme should be tweaked, pointing out a very high-achieving incentive tier that few drivers are on.
For more on Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow's thoughts on transport challenges, read here.
The Singapore civil servant mid-year bonus 2025 will be 0.4 months, with junior-grade officers receiving an additional one-time payment of up to $400, said the Public Service Division (PSD).
According to a statement on 16 June by the PSD, the mid-year bonus takes into account Singapore's economic performance in the first quarter of 2025, and the 'subdued economic outlook' for this year.
"Given the forecast of weaker gross domestic product (GDP) growth and the downside economic risks, the public sector unions and the Government will jointly monitor the economic performance for the rest of the year, and will calibrate the year-end payments accordingly," they wrote.
Singapore's economy grew by 3.9 per cent on a year-on-year basis in the first quarter of 2025, said the PSD. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Trade and Industry maintained the GDP growth forecast of 0 per cent to 2 per cent for 2025.
For more on the civil servant bonus 2025, read here.
Singapore private club 1880 suddenly announced on Tuesday (17 June) that it would permanently close, with its holding company 38 Degrees and operating company 1880 Pte Ltd placed into provisional liquidation.
Singaporean entrepreneur, Chris J Reed, shared a screenshot of the email on his LinkedIn account on Tuesday. However, aside from the closure announcement, the screenshot only said that details about the liquidation process and creditors meeting will be "forthcoming".
According to CNA, which has seen a copy of the email, there were some insights provided into the closure of the business. "Spend and frequency per visit of our members has been trending down. The company needed an injection and some efficiency optimisation," the email read.
"We had three offers to invest in or acquire 1880. Anyone of these would have restored us to health and given a runway to building a global brand. We were however, unsuccessful in getting those offers over the line. With no further funds to pay our staff or suppliers, we have no alternative but to close."
CNA reported that the email alluded to expansion as a reason for the failure.
"We created a brand that earned a reputation that brought opportunities for expansion that I could not resist," the email stated.
The club is located in Robertson Quay, and was founded by Marc Nicholson. It opened in late 2017. As of Monday, the club was still open to members and actively promoting on its social media account.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by 1880 Singapore (@1880singapore)
For more on the Singapore private club 1880 closing, read here.
New private home sales in Singapore have dropped to a five-month low in May amid global tariff tensions. According to data released by the Urban Redevelopment Authority on Monday (16 June), developer sales dropped for a third consecutive month and there were only 312 units bought last month.
Developers have grown more cautious amid Trump's tariffs and the slowed economic outlook for Singapore in the first quarter of 2025. There were no major launches in May – a factor that affected sales figures as well.
The market's sluggish performance is expected to continue into June, typically a slow month due to school holidays. One project in the east sold fewer than 10 per cent of its 107 freehold units during its launch weekend earlier this month.
For more on the slowing private home sales in Singapore, read here.
Second-generation actress Tay Ying got hitched on Sunday (15 June) night to celebrity chef Wu Sihan at Orchard Hotel. Incidentally, this was the same venue where her parents, celebrities Hong Huifang and Zheng Geping, married 32 years ago.
And yes, the choice was intentional, according to Chinese daily Lianhe Zaobao.
Tay Ying shared the news of her wedding on Instagram on 16 June, and wrote, "We had the perfect wedding thanks to so many people. While we take our time to absorb everything that happened this weekend, here are some snippets of Day 2 of our wedding last night."
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Tay Ying 郑颖 (@tayying_)
The actress shared four photos from the night of the wedding, including a photo where she was accompanied by her father, and uncle and godfather, Hong Weiwen. The latter is the younger brother of her mother.
The wedding was held at Orchard Hotel Singapore with 72 tables and about 700 guests.
The guests included Christopher Lee and his wife Fann Wong, Yvonne Lim and her family, Florence Tan, Vincent Ng, Cassandra See, Chen Xiuhuan, Xiang Yun, Aileen Tan, Jin Yinji, Huang Biren, Tang Miaoling, Cherie Lim, Chen Tianwen, Chen Hanwei, Richard Low and Lin Ruping.
Also on the guest list were younger artistes such as Elvin Ng, Romeo Tan, Rebecca Lim, Chantalle Ng, Desmond Tan, Hong Ling and her husband Nick Teo, as well as Denise Camillia Tan and Xixi Lim.
For more on Tay Ying's wedding, read here.
Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow said there will be no major tweaks to the certificate of entitlement (COE) system in the short term. Instead, the focus now is on ensuring that all vehicles are equipped with on-board units (OBUs) for the next-generation Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) system.
On 11 June, Siow explained to reporters, "The reality is there won't be space for every Singaporean to own a car in Singapore." Hence, the COE is the government's way of allocating this "scarce good".
Siow also doesn't think that private-hire cars have driven up COE premiums. He said, "If we didn't have private-hire cars today, actually the reverse would be true, that a large number of these people will feel that they need to buy a car, and then... they will bid the price of the COE up."
He also noted that the economics of a private-hire car are "much more efficient", pointing out that if a COE allocation would be better for a car that can be shared among a larger group of Singaporeans over a private car owner who drives his car twice a day only.
Siow was also asked about private-hire driver hours. This was in light of the tragic death of 49-year-old driver Gavin Neo from a stroke, whom friends said often spent up to 15 hours behind the wheel to provide for his teenage son and daughter.
The acting minister said the Land Transport Authority (LTA) does not regulate the number of hours that private-hire drivers should be on the road, and the unions have not called for such regulations either, as different drivers have different needs.
The LTA will step in if accident rates for private-hire vehicles are much higher than private vehicles, but this has not been the case.
Siow also said the question is whether ride-hailing platform Grab's incentive scheme should be tweaked, pointing out a very high-achieving incentive tier that few drivers are on.
For more on Acting Transport Minister Jeffrey Siow's thoughts on transport challenges, read here.
The Singapore civil servant mid-year bonus 2025 will be 0.4 months, with junior-grade officers receiving an additional one-time payment of up to $400, said the Public Service Division (PSD).
According to a statement on 16 June by the PSD, the mid-year bonus takes into account Singapore's economic performance in the first quarter of 2025, and the 'subdued economic outlook' for this year.
"Given the forecast of weaker gross domestic product (GDP) growth and the downside economic risks, the public sector unions and the Government will jointly monitor the economic performance for the rest of the year, and will calibrate the year-end payments accordingly," they wrote.
Singapore's economy grew by 3.9 per cent on a year-on-year basis in the first quarter of 2025, said the PSD. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Trade and Industry maintained the GDP growth forecast of 0 per cent to 2 per cent for 2025.
For more on the civil servant bonus 2025, read here.