Who is Teo Siong Seng, the Singapore business leader indicted in a US price-fixing case?

Teo Siong Seng, 71, is the current chairman of the Singapore Business Federation (SBF), Singapore's apex business representative body, and the chief executive and chairman of Singamas Container Holdings (Singamas).

He also serves on the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT), a tripartite body chaired by Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.

SERT was established to help businesses navigate the effects of US tariffs globally, including a 10 per cent duty on Singapore — the same government whose DOJ has now charged Teo under federal criminal law.

The superseding indictment was filed under seal on 22 January 2026 and unsealed on 19 May 2026, following the arrest of a Singamas employee in France.

It charges Teo with conspiring to restrict output and fix the prices of standard dry shipping containers from at least November 2019 to January 2024.

According to the indictment, the six company conspirators — including Singamas — together manufactured approximately 95 per cent of the world's standard dry containers during the conspiracy period.

The case is among the most consequential US federal criminal charges to be brought against a sitting chairman of Singapore's principal business lobby organisation.

A maritime dynasty

Teo is the fifth son of the late Chang Yun Chung, the shipping patriarch who founded Pacific International Lines (PIL) in 1967. Chang died at his Singapore home on 4 September 2020 at the age of 102.

During his lifetime, Chang was recognised by Forbes as the world's oldest billionaire following the death of David Rockefeller in 2017. He is survived by eight sons and six daughters.

In a video published by the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) in January 2026, Teo recalled his father raising the prospect of a seafaring career when he was just 13.

The experience convinced him that "maritime is what I'm interested in, and shipping will be my career," in his own words.

Teo worked as a deckhand and cargo tally clerk during school holidays, and at 16 joined the passenger-cargo vessel Kota Panjang as a cadet, travelling to ports in Penang, Hong Kong, and Huangpu.

He later studied at Raffles Institution before graduating from the University of Glasgow with a First Class Honours degree in Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering.

Career at PIL and Singamas

Teo formally joined PIL in 1979. He rose to assistant managing director in 1982, deputy managing director by 1986, and managing director in October 1992.

Under his leadership, PIL expanded from intra-Asia routes into China, the Middle East, East Africa, Europe, and North America. By 2000, PIL had an annual turnover of S$1.3 billion, making it Singapore's second-largest shipping conglomerate.

In April 2018, Teo was appointed PIL's executive chairman, taking over from his father.

He has served as chief executive and chairman of Singamas — a PIL subsidiary and one of the world's largest container manufacturers — since 21 January 1997.

A record of public service

Teo's career extended well beyond commerce. He served as a Nominated Member of Parliament (NMP) from 2009 to 2014, representing the commerce sector.

In that capacity, he advocated for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), called for greater government support for companies expanding internationally, and pushed for reductions in regulatory compliance costs.

He chaired the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCCI) from 2009 to 2013, introducing merit-based reforms including the removal of clan-based reserved seats from the chamber's election system.

Teo first served as SBF chairman from 2014 to 2020. He was reappointed on 20 May 2025, following the early departure of his predecessor, and was subsequently named to SERT.

He also serves as pro-chancellor of the National University of Singapore (NUS) and as Honorary Consul of Tanzania to Singapore.

He holds the Public Service Medal, awarded at Singapore's National Day in 2010, and the Public Service Star, awarded in 2019.

Why the indictment carries exceptional weight

The SBF is Singapore's apex business representative body, engaging directly with government on economic policy and representing Singapore's commercial interests at international forums.

Its chairman holds one of the most visible private-sector positions in the country, serving as a principal interlocutor between Singapore's business community and the state.

Teo's concurrent membership of SERT — a task force dealing directly with US trade policy — adds a further institutional dimension to a case brought by the US federal government.

The DOJ's allegations against Teo are specific in nature. Court documents allege he was personally briefed on the price-fixing arrangement and in July 2022 stated a preference for a monthly quota system over daily working-hour restrictions.

He is further alleged to have received a document in November 2023 detailing the conspiracy's "total allowable capacity," organised by company and production line.

In December 2019, Teo is alleged to have responded to a report on the six-company meeting by writing that "we also need to keep low key," and to have agreed to delete the relevant e-mail thread.

In March 2022, a Singamas executive advised him to remove any reference to "market discipline" from an investor presentation owing to "anti-trust issue."

Court documents allege Teo replied: "Appreciate, I will make some amendments to the slide (take out come [sic] words) and revert tomorrow am."

The alleged conspiracy ran through the Covid-19 pandemic. Standard 20-foot container prices more than doubled from approximately US$1,600 to over US$3,500 between 2019 and 2021.

Company response and trading halt

Singamas had previously made an announcement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on 30 April 2026 in connection with what it described as alleged anti-competitive conduct — nearly three weeks before the DOJ's public announcement.

Trading in Singamas shares on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was halted at 1:49 p.m. on 20 May 2026, the day after the DOJ's announcement, pending the release of a formal company statement.

In its inside information announcement filed on 20 May 2026, Singamas confirmed that the DOJ had announced charges against the company, Teo, and an unnamed employee.

Singamas described that employee as "not a director of the Company nor a member of its senior management." The indictment identifies the individual as marketing director Vick Nam Hing Ma, 54.

Singamas stated that as of the date of filing, neither the company nor Teo had been served with any legal process or documentation by the DOJ in relation to the matter.

The company said it had engaged external legal advisers and that its board considered business operations and day-to-day activities to "remain normal in all material respects."

Trading resumed at 9:00 a.m. on 21 May 2026. Teo remained listed as executive director and chairman of Singamas's board as at the date of the filing.

PIL and Singamas at stake

For PIL, the indictment carries reputational consequences of the first order. The company is Singapore's largest homegrown container shipping line, with operations spanning more than 100 countries.

Singamas, as a named corporate defendant, faces a maximum statutory fine of US$100 million, subject to increase if the estimated gain from the alleged crime exceeds that figure.

Teo has not been arrested and is believed to be a resident of Singapore.

The employee referenced in Singamas's filing — identified in the indictment as Vick Nam Hing Ma, 54, marketing director of Singamas — was arrested in France on 14 April 2026. Ma is believed to be a resident of Hong Kong.

Ma was allegedly attempting to board a flight to Hong Kong at the time of his arrest. His extradition to the United States is pending.

All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.