CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) Singapore: Investing Your CPF Beyond the Guaranteed Interest Rate
The CPF Investment Scheme (CPFIS) lets Singapore CPF members invest a portion of their Ordinary Account and Special Account savings in approved stocks, ETFs, unit trusts, bonds, and insurance products, instead of leaving all of it earning the default CPF interest rate.
Not financial advice. All figures for educational reference only. Data as at November 2026. Last updated: November 2026.
Key Takeaways
- CPFIS is split into CPFIS-OA, which lets you invest Ordinary Account savings above the first S$20,000, and CPFIS-SA, which lets you invest Special Account savings above the first S$40,000.
- You must open a CPFIS Investment Account with one of three agent banks — DBS, OCBC, or UOB — before you can buy any CPFIS-approved investment.
- Only investments on the official CPFIS-included list qualify: this covers selected SGX-listed shares, Singapore government bonds, selected unit trusts and ETFs, and selected insurance products, not any stock or fund you like.
- CPF’s own Ordinary Account interest rate floor is 2.5% per year, and Special Account typically earns up to 4% or more depending on the prevailing formula, which means any CPFIS investment needs to beat those returns, after costs, to actually be worthwhile.
- CPF Board publishes an annual CPFIS member returns comparison showing that a meaningful share of CPFIS investors historically underperformed simply leaving their money in CPF earning the default interest rate, after accounting for fees and poor timing.
What Is the CPF Investment Scheme?
Every working Singaporean’s CPF Ordinary Account (OA) earns a guaranteed 2.5% per year (the legislated floor), and the Special Account (SA) earns an even higher rate under the extra interest and long-term formula, currently touching close to 4% or above when combined with the government’s extra 1% on the first S$60,000 of combined balances. These are risk-free, government-backed returns that are genuinely difficult for most investments to beat consistently, after fees.
Even so, some CPF members want more control, or believe they can do better over the long run through equities or other assets, particularly during multi-decade accumulation periods before retirement. The CPF Investment Scheme exists for exactly this group: it allows members to withdraw a defined portion of their OA and/or SA savings and direct it into a specific, CPF Board-approved menu of investments, while the rest continues to earn the default CPF interest rates.
The scheme has two tracks. CPFIS-OA lets you invest OA savings above the first S$20,000 (that first S$20,000 must always stay in your OA, untouched, as a safety buffer). CPFIS-SA is more restrictive: it only lets you invest SA savings above the first S$40,000, and the list of SA-eligible investments is narrower and generally lower-risk than the OA list, reflecting the SA’s role as a core retirement fund.
How Does the CPF Investment Scheme Work in Singapore?
To use CPFIS, a member must first open a CPFIS Investment Account with one of three appointed agent banks — DBS, OCBC, or UOB. This account is simply the administrative conduit; actual purchases are typically placed through a linked brokerage account (such as DBS Vickers, iOCBC, or UOB Kay Hian) that draws funds from the CPFIS Investment Account rather than from a regular cash trading account.
The approved investment list, published and updated by CPF Board, includes a defined set of SGX-listed shares (generally larger, more established companies meeting certain criteria), Singapore Government Securities, selected unit trusts and investment-linked insurance products, selected Exchange Traded Funds, fixed deposits, and annuities. Crucially, this is a whitelist — you cannot use CPFIS money to buy an arbitrary small-cap stock, a cryptocurrency fund, or most overseas-listed shares, even if you could buy them with cash outside CPF.
There is also a statutory cap limiting how much of your investible savings you can put into riskier categories, such as shares and property funds, versus more conservative instruments, which is designed to prevent over-concentration in high-risk assets using retirement money.
| Feature | CPFIS-OA | CPFIS-SA |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum balance that must remain uninvested | First S$20,000 of OA | First S$40,000 of SA |
| Agent banks | DBS, OCBC, UOB | DBS, OCBC, UOB |
| Investment menu breadth | Wider — shares, bonds, unit trusts, ETFs, insurance | Narrower — mainly lower-risk, SA-approved products |
| Default fallback return | 2.5% p.a. (OA floor) | Up to ~4%+ p.a. (SA formula, with extra interest tiers) |
the CPF Investment Scheme Example
Jun Wei, 38, has S$65,000 in his CPF Ordinary Account. The first S$20,000 must stay put, so he can invest up to S$45,000 under CPFIS-OA. He opens a CPFIS Investment Account with DBS and, through his linked DBS Vickers brokerage account, buys S$20,000 worth of a CPFIS-included Singapore equity index ETF and S$15,000 of Singapore Government Securities, leaving S$10,000 of the investible S$45,000 unused for now.
Over the following three years, his ETF returns an average of 6% a year, comfortably beating the 2.5% OA floor rate the same money would otherwise have earned. However, he also pays brokerage commissions on each purchase and an annual platform fee through his agent bank, which eat into that outperformance. CPF Board’s own published data shows that outcomes like Jun Wei’s are far from universal — a significant share of CPFIS investors, after accounting for fees, timing, and investment choices, end up with returns below what they would have earned simply leaving the money in CPF.
Advantages of the CPF Investment Scheme
- Potential for higher long-term returns. Well-chosen CPFIS investments held over long periods have the potential to outperform the CPF OA’s 2.5% floor rate, particularly through equities over a multi-decade horizon.
- Access to a curated, lower-risk menu. Because only CPF Board-approved products are eligible, the universe is pre-screened to exclude the most speculative or high-risk instruments.
- Diversification away from a single CPF interest formula. Investors can spread exposure across equities, bonds, and insurance-linked products rather than relying solely on CPF’s administered rates.
- Flexibility to stop any time. Members can choose how much to invest, when to invest, and can simply leave future contributions in CPF earning the default rate if they prefer not to invest further.
Risks and Limitations
- You are very likely giving up a risk-free, government-guaranteed return. Both the 2.5% OA floor and the SA’s blended rate are extremely difficult benchmarks for a risk-adjusted investment to beat consistently.
- Fees eat into returns. Brokerage commissions, platform fees, and fund management charges all reduce net returns, and CPF Board’s own statistics have repeatedly shown many CPFIS investors underperforming the default rate after costs.
- The approved list limits diversification. You cannot use CPFIS money to access many overseas markets, smaller-cap counters, or newer asset classes, even if those might otherwise suit your strategy.
- Poor timing risk is real. Because this is retirement money with a long horizon but a specific eventual payout need, buying at a market peak and needing to withdraw during a downturn can lock in losses relative to the guaranteed alternative.
- Administrative friction. Managing a separate CPFIS Investment Account, linked brokerage account, and tracking eligible instruments adds complexity most CPF members do not face with their default CPF balances.
CPFIS vs Supplementary Retirement Scheme (SRS) vs Leaving Money in CPF
| Feature | CPFIS | SRS | Default CPF (No Investing) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Source of funds | Existing CPF OA/SA balances above the protected floor | Separate voluntary cash contributions, tax-deductible | Ordinary CPF contributions and interest |
| Guaranteed return? | No — market risk applies | No — market risk applies | Yes — 2.5% OA floor, higher SA rate |
| Investment menu | CPF Board-approved whitelist only | Much broader — most SRS-approved bank products | N/A |
| Primary appeal | Potential to beat CPF’s administered rates over time | Tax relief plus investment flexibility | Simplicity, zero risk, guaranteed compounding |
Source: CPF Board CPFIS and SRS scheme rules, compiled November 2026.
The Bottom Line
For Singapore investors, the CPF Investment Scheme is a genuine option to pursue higher returns with CPF savings, but CPF Board’s own data is a persistent reminder that the 2.5% to 4%-plus guaranteed rates already baked into CPF are a surprisingly high bar — most members should treat CPFIS as a deliberate, fee-aware, long-horizon choice rather than a default upgrade.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the CPF Investment Scheme?
CPFIS is a scheme that lets CPF members invest a portion of their Ordinary Account and Special Account savings, above protected minimum balances, into a CPF Board-approved list of shares, bonds, unit trusts, ETFs, and insurance products.
How much CPF money can I invest under CPFIS?
Under CPFIS-OA, you can invest Ordinary Account savings above the first S$20,000. Under CPFIS-SA, you can invest Special Account savings above the first S$40,000; both minimums must remain untouched.
Which banks can I use for CPFIS?
You must open a CPFIS Investment Account with one of three appointed agent banks: DBS, OCBC, or UOB, which then links to a brokerage account for actual trade execution.
Is investing through CPFIS better than leaving money in CPF?
Not necessarily. CPF Board’s own published data shows many CPFIS investors have historically earned less, after fees and poor timing, than they would have earned simply leaving the money to earn CPF’s guaranteed interest rates.
Can I use CPFIS to buy any stock I want?
No. Only investments on CPF Board’s official approved list qualify — this excludes most overseas-listed shares, smaller or newer SGX counters, and many other investment products available outside CPF.
