A Lombard loan is a loan secured by a pledge of liquid financial assets — listed shares, bonds, or funds. It is a staple of private banking across Singapore, Hong Kong, and Switzerland: rather than sell, an investor pledges a portfolio and draws cash against it, keeping ownership and market exposure. Applied to Bursa Malaysia–listed shares, the same principle funds liquidity against a Malaysian holding — and, structured the way we arrange it, does so non-recourse, so you keep your shares, dividends, and upside.
Key takeaways
- A Lombard loan raises cash against pledged securities while you keep ownership and upside.
- We arrange Lombard-style facilities against Bursa Malaysia shares, including concentrated single-counter positions.
- Margin terms agreed up front. Any collateral top-up is set and documented before funding, not a broker's standardised maintenance call — and non-recourse where available.
- Built for Singapore family offices, CIOs, and principals holding Malaysian equity.
- Conventional or Shariah-compliant; transactions from RM 5 million.
What is a Lombard loan?
The term comes from Lombardy, the medieval banking region, and survives in private banking as shorthand for lending against pledged securities. A bank assigns each eligible asset a lending value — a percentage of market value after a haircut — and advances cash up to the aggregate. The borrower retains the portfolio, continues to receive dividends and coupons, and repays on a flexible basis. The appeal is simple: liquidity without a disposal, and without the tax, signalling, and control consequences a sale can carry.
Lombard-style financing for Bursa Malaysia–listed shares
Most private-bank Lombard programmes are built around diversified, bank-custodied portfolios and lean away from concentration. A founder or family office whose wealth sits in a single Bursa Malaysia counter often falls outside that table. We specialise in exactly that case: financing secured against your Bursa Malaysia–listed shares — the borrower opens an account with the designated custodian, over which the lender takes security, where the collateral shares are held — sized to the liquidity, volatility, free float, and concentration of the specific counter rather than excluded for being concentrated. The underlying mechanics are the same ones set out on our stock loans page; this is that financing, described in the vocabulary a private-banking client already uses.
How our structure compares to a private-bank Lombard facility
| Feature | Typical private-bank Lombard | Our Lombard-style financing |
|---|---|---|
| Collateral preference | Diversified, custodied portfolio | Concentrated single-counter holdings accepted |
| Margin terms | Standardised maintenance margin | Agreed per transaction, documented up front |
| Recourse | Usually full-recourse | Non-recourse available |
| Banking relationship | Requires onboarding the whole portfolio | Single-transaction, principal-led |
| You keep | Ownership & income | Ownership, dividends & upside |
For Singapore family offices and CIOs holding Malaysian equity
Singapore is the region's private-banking hub, and a great deal of Malaysian-listed wealth is held or advised from there. For a Singapore family office, CIO, or principal, a Lombard-style facility against a Bursa position unlocks capital for diversification, co-investment, or succession planning without selling the Malaysian holding, signalling a change of intent, or surrendering control. The cross-border element — Malaysian collateral, regional decision-makers — is precisely what a specialist arranger is built to handle. For the product framed in Malaysian-market terms, see share margin financing.
Eligibility, LTV, and getting indicative terms
Eligibility turns on the specific counter — its liquidity, volatility, free float, and the size of your position — and on whether a conventional or Shariah-compliant structure is preferred. Indicative LTV is issued only after review of the actual holding; tenors typically run 12–36 months. Transactions are structured from RM 5 million upward, with no defined ceiling.
To begin, a confidential enquiry sets out the high-level details; indicative terms usually follow within two to three business days, with a principal involved throughout. Read the process, compare with share margin financing, or contact us for a confidential conversation.