ICC report confirms Singapore as a leading Asia arbitration hub

In 2015, over 6% of all new ICC cases named Singapore as the seat of arbitration upholding the city’s ranking as the number one seat of ICC Arbitration in Asia and retaining its position in the top five most chosen cities for the tenth consecutive year. As a reputed seat of arbitration for Singaporean and foreign parties alike, Singapore ranked the 4th most preferred seat of arbitration in the world.

The 2015 ICC Dispute Resolution Statistics to be published next month also indicate that while the number of Singaporean parties remained constant over the last 12 months, the number of foreign parties choosing Singapore as a seat for arbitration is on the rise.

In over 71% out of all new Singapore seated arbitrations filed in 2015, one or more of the parties was not Singaporean while in close to half of these cases, a non-Singapore arbitrator was appointed.

It is important to highlight that under ICC Rules of Arbitration, parties do not require any Singaporean connections to arbitrate in Singapore. They also have the flexibility to choose an arbitrator of any nationality despite the seat of arbitration.

“It is important to highlight that under ICC Rules of Arbitration, parties do not require any Singaporean connections to arbitrate in Singapore. They also have the flexibility to choose an arbitrator of any nationality despite the seat of arbitration,” said Abhinav Bhushan, ICC’s recently appointed Regional Director for South Asia.

In 2015 the Court recorded the second highest number of new cases in its 93-year history, with some 801 cases filed over the course of 2015. New cases administered by the Court involved a total of 2,283 parties-with multiparty disputes accounting for more than 30% of the total new caseload for the first time.

New records were set in 2015 for the average value of new ICC disputes and the aggregate value of cases before the Court. The average monetary value in dispute in new ICC cases rose to US$84 million from US$63 million in 2014-with the largest dispute valued at over US$1 billion. The aggregate value of all disputes pending before the Court at the end of the year stood at US$286 billion.

The figures show the unrivalled and growing reach of ICC Arbitration. We are particularly delighted with the strong growth of ICC Arbitration in North America and Asia-reflecting the establishment of new representative offices in these regions in recent years.

Commenting on the release of these results, President of the ICC Court Alexis Mourre said: “The figures show the unrivalled and growing reach of ICC Arbitration. We are particularly delighted with the strong growth of ICC Arbitration in North America and Asia-reflecting the establishment of new representative offices in these regions in recent years.”

The full version of the ICC Statistical Report for 2015 will be published in the next edition of the ICC Bulletin due to be published later this month. To subscribe visit the ICC Knowledge 2 GO.

To learn more about international arbitration in the region, attend the upcoming ICC Asia Conference on the 28-30 June 2016.