Question

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Ministry has assessed the impact of a major e-commerce platform’s recent extension of payment terms on small businesses in Singapore; and (b) whether regulations can be applied to ensure that large e-commerce platforms release payments promptly to support small merchants and prevent undue delays in cash flow.

Oral Answer (to be attributed to Minister of State for Trade and Industry Alvin Tan)

1. The Government engaged the e-commerce platform after receiving feedback on changes to its payment terms.

2. The e-commerce platform had updated its payment terms in June 2023, to allow the platform to wait until after the buyer’s return or refund period ends before releasing the monies to the merchants. This was to strengthen its consumer protection and fraud detection efforts. As these are private commercial agreements, we provided the feedback provider with a contact point at the e-commerce platform and advised the feedback provider to engage the e-commerce platform directly to address further concerns.

3. In the case of disputes, there are established processes and available legal avenues to assist merchants, including small businesses. For example, they can file a civil claim with the courts.