Kenneth Tiong
Kenneth Tiong | |
|---|---|
张文杰 | |
| Member of Parliament for Aljunied GRC | |
| Assumed office 3 May 2025 | |
| Preceded by | WP held |
| Majority | 25,783 (19.42%) |
| Constituency | Serangoon |
| Treasurer of the Workers' Party | |
| Assumed office 7 July 2026 | |
| Preceded by | He Ting Ru |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Kenneth Tiong Boon Kiat 1989 (age 36–37) |
| Party | Workers' Party |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Brown University |
| Occupation |
|
Kenneth Tiong Boon Kiat[a] (born 1989)[1] is a Singaporean politician and businessman. A member of the Workers' Party (WP), Tiong has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Serangoon division of Aljunied Group Representation Constituency (GRC) since 2025. He has served as the party's treasurer since 2026.
Education
[edit]Tiong attended Raffles Institution and Raffles Junior College. In 2014, he graduated from Brown University with a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics-Computer Science and Philosophy.[1][2]
Career
[edit]Tiong worked at McKinsey & Company from 2014 to 2016 as a business analyst, and at Millennium Management from 2016 to 2018 as a quantitative analyst. He later became head quant developer and portfolio manager at Brahman Capital and worked there until 2022.[2]
In 2022, Tiong co-founded a technology startup and served as its chief technology officer until 2023. Since 2023, he has been the director of Sensemake.ai, a news intelligence platform.[2]
Political career
[edit]Tiong first volunteered with the WP in 2023, contributing to its policy team and assisting party activities in East Coast GRC and Aljunied GRC. He joined the party in late 2023. In May 2024, he became the legislative assistant of Leader of the Opposition Pritam Singh, and, in January 2025, the party's coordinator for activities in the Serangoon division of Aljunied GRC.[1][3] In April 2025, he was spotted at an Aljunied GRC event, causing speculation that he would run in the 2025 general election.[4] On Nomination Day, 23 April, Tiong was officially announced as a WP candidate for Aljunied GRC.[5][6][7][8]
During the 2025 general election, Tiong was in a five-member WP team and contested in Aljunied GRC with Pritam Singh, Sylvia Lim, Gerald Giam and Fadli Fawzi and won the GRC with 59.71% of the votes. Tiong was elected as Member of Parliament representing Aljunied GRC in the 15th Parliament.[9][10]
Central Executive Committee
[edit]In June 2025, Tiong was co-opted to the WP's Central Executive Committee (CEC) as the party's deputy treasurer.[11] At the party's cadre members' conference on 28 June 2026, he was elected to the CEC for the 2026–2028 term.[12] At the committee's first meeting on 7 July 2026, he was appointed treasurer, succeeding He Ting Ru.[12]
Parliamentary record
[edit]Maiden speech
[edit]Tiong delivered his maiden speech during the debate on the President's Address in September 2025, arguing that Singapore should build "inherent capacity" – an indigenous industrial base – through "positive integration" with regional partners modelled on the Airbus consortium, rather than rely on foreign direct investment or trade-barrier removal alone.[13][14]
Space agency
[edit]On 22 September 2025, during clarifications to Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong's speech on industry transformation, Tiong asked whether the government intended to establish a national space agency. Gan replied that Singapore already had the Office for Space Technology and Industry (OSTIn) and was exploring further opportunities in space technology.[15] On 2 February 2026, Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science & Technology Tan See Leng announced at the inaugural Space Summit that the government would establish the National Space Agency of Singapore (NSAS) on 1 April 2026 as a department under the Ministry of Trade and Industry, with OSTIn to be folded into the new agency.[16][14]
Gold trading hub
[edit]On 12 February 2026, Tiong moved an adjournment motion proposing that Singapore develop as a regional gold trading hub, outlining proposals for sovereign custody guarantees, expanded refining capacity, a bullion standard, and gold derivatives infrastructure.[17] In his parliamentary reply, MAS Deputy Chairman Chee Hong Tat said the government's objectives "do not differ" and that it would consider the proposals.[18] On 27 March 2026, MAS and the Singapore Bullion Market Association announced plans to develop Singapore as a gold trading centre, including vaulting services for foreign central banks.[19][20]
Personal life
[edit]Tiong is married with two children.[2]
External links
[edit]- Kenneth Tiong's Annotated Intentions – personal blog on Substack
Notes
[edit]- ↑ Chinese: 张文杰; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Tiong Bûn-kia̍t; pinyin: Zhāng Wénjié
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Oh, Tessa (17 April 2025). "Singapore election 2025: 'Don't fly back to the same old answers' – Workers' Party newcomer Kenneth Tiong wants to offer fresh ideas". The Business Times. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 "Mr Kenneth Tiong" (PDF). Parliament of Singapore. Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 October 2025. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
- ↑ "Kenneth Tiong". www.wp.sg. Archived from the original on 5 May 2025. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
- ↑ "GE2025: WP new face Kenneth Tiong spotted at Aljunied community event". The Straits Times. 12 April 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
- ↑ "GE2025: WP team in Aljunied GRC to be led again by party chief Pritam Singh". CNA. Archived from the original on 22 July 2025. Retrieved 3 October 2025.
- ↑ "GE2025: WP retains strongholds in Aljunied and Hougang despite national swing to PAP". The Straits Times. 4 May 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
- ↑ "ELD | 2025 Parliamentary General Election Results". www.eld.gov.sg. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
- ↑ "'You just have to be yourself': WP's Kenneth Tiong on replacing Leon Perera in Aljunied GRC". mothership.sg. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
- ↑ Lee, Loraine (23 April 2025). "GE2025: WP team in Aljunied GRC to be led again by party chief Pritam Singh". CNA. Archived from the original on 24 April 2025. Retrieved 25 April 2025.
- ↑ "WP wins Aljunied GRC with 59.68% of votes over PAP". AsiaOne. 4 May 2025. Archived from the original on 4 May 2025. Retrieved 4 May 2025.
- ↑ "WP co-opts 4 rookie MPs into CEC, NCMP Eileen Chong to head youth wing". The Straits Times. 18 June 2025. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 11 July 2025.
- 1 2 "Andre Low, Fadli Fawzi co-opted into WP CEC, Faisal Manap re-appointed as Vice Chair". Mothership. 8 July 2026. Retrieved 24 July 2026.
- ↑ "Speech by Kenneth Tiong on Building Our Inherent Capacity". Workers' Party. Retrieved 16 May 2026.
- 1 2 Tham, Yuen-C; Chin, Soo Fang (10 May 2026). "New MPs turn to social media, raise issues in Parliament to connect with Singaporeans". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ "Singapore Parliamentary Debates, 22 September 2025". Parliament of Singapore. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ Lee, Nian Tjoe (2 February 2026). "Singapore to set up national space agency on April 1 to develop and run space capabilities". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 11 May 2026.
- ↑ "Speech by Kenneth Tiong On An Industrial Policy in Finance". Workers' Party. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
- ↑ "Reply to Adjournment Motion on "An Industrial Policy in Finance"". Monetary Authority of Singapore. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
- ↑ Goh, Timothy (27 March 2026). "S'pore unveils plan to become a gold trading hub amid rising investor interest". The Straits Times. ISSN 0585-3923. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
- ↑ "Singapore Sets out Key Focus Areas to Develop Singapore as a Gold Trading Centre". Monetary Authority of Singapore. 27 March 2026. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
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