How Singapore shows feasibility of market socialism.
Recently, a capitalist posted on this subreddit about Singapore, and I want to discuss this point.
Singapore cannot really be called state socialist because there is no comprehensive state planning. However, many of its reforms could be considered market socialist in nature.
Talking about specific laws and policies:
Tax deferral (QEEBR): Employees can defer income tax on gains from qualified share options, reducing cash flow pressure when exercising options.
Corporate tax deductions: Companies can claim tax deductions on ESOP-related expenses.
Budget 2025 enhancement: From YA 2026, holding companies issuing new shares under EEBR plans can also claim tax deductions.
Historical ERIS incentives: Earlier schemes provided major tax exemptions on equity gains, especially for start-ups, showing long-term support for employee ownership.
Exemption from shareholder limits: Employees receiving shares under ESOPs are excluded from the 50-shareholder cap for private companies.
Financial assistance exception: Companies are allowed to provide financial assistance for employee share plans despite general restrictions.
Prospectus exemptions: Employee share offers are often exempt from full MAS prospectus requirements if certain conditions are met.
Treasury Share Usage: The Act (Section 76H) allows companies to repurchase their own shares and hold them as "treasury shares" to fulfill ESOP obligations.
The overall effect is a major expansion of employee ownership in Singapore.
There are dozens of studies showing the benefits of cooperative ownership of the means of production:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1FXbK8OXw3JRv3p9qMQrN6IkrLMNkgQ6t/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1OwRRcqrRlJ4I5wCiT7rCQcZOGsMYKYBG/view?usp=drive_link
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1y37ltEoYxaWr7zCmOQ_fbiM8fm-XyfnB/view?usp=drive_link
These actions align directly with a materialist point of view. As capital expands and concentrates, the rate of return on capital tends to decline. One of the best ways to reduce negative effects such as excessive savings, insufficient demand, underinvestment in knowledge and labor, economic myopia, economic rents, and principal-agent problems is to expand employee stock ownership and worker-owned firms within the economy.
This can provide superior X-efficiency, allocative efficiency, and Keynesian efficiency, thereby stimulating long-term prosperous growth.
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1hlvs0GTtNKxtWP3YLqMJWzazzGlWj4iR/view?usp=drive_link
So, from your point of view, is Singapore’s path toward market socialism feasible? Why or why not?