SINGAPORE: CNA bagged two wins at the 2026 Investors’ Choice Awards on Wednesday (Oct 21), recognising its investigative reporting and financial journalism.
Presented by the Securities Investors Association (Singapore) (SIAS), the awards recognise companies and individuals who help strengthen investor confidence and foster a culture of accountability across Singapore's capital markets.
This year’s awards were presented to 45 recipients across seven categories, including corporate governance, shareholder communication and transparency.
CNA received the Special Award in the Financial Journalist Award category for its investigative reporting on the alleged Nanning Ponzi pyramid scheme, while producer Daphne Koh from its Money Mind podcast team won Financial Story of the Year.
“The Investors’ Choice Awards celebrate companies and individuals who have demonstrated a strong commitment to good governance, transparency and the interests of shareholders,” said SIAS CEO and founder David Gerald.
“We also acknowledge the important contributions of corporate leaders, financial intermediaries and journalists in supporting a well-informed and engaged investing community,” he added in a press release.
CNA's Special Award recognised its coverage of an alleged pyramid scheme in Nanning, China, that drew in Singaporeans with promises of investment opportunities.
SIAS said the team's coverage went beyond conventional reporting as the journalists went undercover to interview Singaporeans lured into the scheme in China.
This brought rare, first-hand insight into the operations of such schemes, it said.
The association said it was presenting the team with the Special Award as their work had embodied the spirit of both the Financial Story of the Year and Financial Education Journalist of the Year categories.
Ms Koh won Financial Story of the Year for her Money Mind podcast episode, A Flat I Might Outlive, which examined the decision of a 40-year-old Singaporean to buy a Housing and Development Board flat with only 48 years left on its lease.
The story explored the trade-offs between affordability, financial flexibility, resale risk and future returns, while challenging conventional ideas about property as a means of accumulating wealth, SIAS said.
The association said the episode made a complex investment question accessible and relevant to everyday investors, drawing almost 400,000 YouTube views and hundreds of comments.
In 2025, CNA938 presenter and senior producer Andrea Heng was awarded Investor Education Journalist of the Year for her work in educating investors across various platforms.
The Money Mind team also received the Media Excellence in Community Investor Education Award in 2023, while CNA's Talking Point programme won a Special Award that year for a two-part series on malware scams.
INVESTORS URGED TO AVOID COMPANIES WITH POOR ENVIRONMENTAL RECORDS
Wednesday's awards ceremony came as hazy conditions persisted in parts of Singapore due to smoke from fires in Indonesia.
In his speech, Mr Gerald urged investors to think carefully about where they put their money, urging them to avoid companies with poor environmental records, particularly those linked to the haze.
“This applies especially to those linked to the haze, which causes massive destruction of forests and green spaces and causes harm to public health, disrupts daily life and businesses, and damages the region's environment and reputation,” he said.
The government has named 10 companies in Indonesia that may have contributed to haze in Singapore. Of them, three have also been under investigation for their potential links to the haze in 2015.
"Investors who fund such companies, even indirectly, share some responsibility for these outcomes," said Mr Gerald.
“SIAS will continue to raise awareness among investors about environmental, social and governance risks, and encourage them to check a company's sustainability practices before investing,” he said.
“Companies that disregard the environment also face real financial risks, including regulatory penalties, legal liabilities, reputational damage and declining investor confidence,” he added.
Minister for National Development Chee Hong Tat, who was guest-of-honour at the awards ceremony, also addressed the haze in his address.
He said conducting business responsibly and within the law should be a basic expectation of all listed companies.
“Companies should not engage in illegal activities, nor should they work with or support other companies involved in such activities – including unlawful burning that causes transboundary haze.”
Mr Chee, who is also deputy chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, warned that the government would take action against errant firms and individuals.
He added that listed companies carry responsibilities to their shareholders, stakeholders and the wider community.
“I am sure everyone agrees with me that upholding these responsibilities is an important part of maintaining public and investor trust.”