2025 has arrived with challenging economic headwinds. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong recently warned that "the era of rules-based globalisation and free trade is over," marking a shift to a "more protectionist and dangerous" global landscape. Singapore's export-reliant economy is feeling this strain, with Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong cautioning that "we cannot rule out the possibility of a recession this year" due to escalating trade wars.
Yet, Singapore is responding proactively. Budget 2025 has been crafted to bolster economic resilience and support enterprises with new initiatives and relief measures. At the same time, staple support schemes like the Enterprise Development Grant (EDG) remain crucial to help companies transform and weather uncertainty.
As someone who works closely with SMEs on their financing and growth strategies, I believe this is a critical moment. By leveraging government grants and digital tools, businesses can automate routine tasks, track carbon footprints, and empower teams with new skills for greater competitiveness and resilience. The opportunities are there – but they require strategic alignment to maximize impact.
In this article, I'll explore how your SME can navigate these funding avenues by aligning EDG applications with Budget 2025's key initiatives, helping your business maximize support in an ever-evolving economic landscape. But first, let’s start with the basics.
The Enterprise Development Grant is Enterprise Singapore's flagship program designed to help local companies upgrade capabilities, innovate, and expand abroad. EDG co-funds projects that drive business transformation across three main categories:
For most SMEs, the grant typically funds up to 50% of qualifying project costs, including third-party consultancy fees, technology purchases, and even internal manpower. But–as announced more recently by the government– sustainability-related projects enjoy enhanced support of up to 70% funding through March 2026. This is very much in line with Singapore's push for green transition.
To be eligible, businesses must be registered and operating in Singapore, have at least 30% local ownership, and be financially viable. Each application is assessed on the project's scope, expected outcomes, and the competency of service providers involved.
In 2025's challenging climate, EDG offers critical support for companies to invest in upgrading themselves despite market uncertainty. Whether digitalizing operations to cope with manpower shortages, developing new products for overseas markets, or building sustainability capabilities, EDG provides the funding boost to get these projects off the ground.
Singapore's Budget 2025 introduced targeted measures to help businesses manage short-term costs while investing in long-term capabilities. Here are the most SME-relevant funding and support initiatives:
To alleviate immediate pressures, the government announced a one-time 50% Corporate Income Tax rebate for Year of Assessment 2025, capped at SGD 40,000 per company. Even firms with minimal taxable profit will receive a cash grant of at least SGD 2,000, provided they are active and employ at least one local worker. Additionally, co-funding under the Progressive Wage Credit Scheme was increased, helping companies shoulder wage increments for lower-income workers.
Budget 2025 made substantial investments in innovation:
The ECI offers digitally-mature firms subsidized access to cutting-edge AI tools, computing power, and expert consultancy. This is a potential gamechanger—a chance to automate those soul-crushing tasks like paperwork and data processing, allowing your employees to focus on higher-value work.
To help businesses diversify and grow new revenue streams abroad:
While Budget 2025 didn't introduce a specific new "green grant" for SMEs, it reinforced the government's broader commitments:
I've always advised my clients to view going green as smart business. It's about spotting where you're literally burning cash via wasteful processes and leveraging green tax breaks to offset costs like energy-efficient equipment or facility upgrades.
Recognizing technology's transformative impact on jobs, Budget 2025 offers significant support for workforce development:
These initiatives lower barriers for SMEs to upgrade workers' skills or redesign jobs alongside tech adoption, building more adaptable, future-ready teams without bearing the full cost.
No discussion of 2025's business climate would be complete without addressing rising trade tensions. The unprecedented 10% "universal" tariff on U.S. imports has jolted export-dependent economies worldwide. For Singapore, these protectionist measures prompted order cancellations from U.S. and Chinese customers, leading the government to downgrade its 2025 GDP growth projection to 0%–2%.
In response, Singapore formed the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT) in April 2025. Led by DPM and Trade Minister Gan Kim Yong, this high-level task force brings together government officials, industry leaders, and union representatives to:
SERT will likely coordinate targeted relief for the worst-hit sectors while recommending structural moves to fortify Singapore against de-globalization—strategies like diversifying supply chains, enhancing self-sufficiency in critical industries, or strengthening trade partnerships beyond the U.S. sphere. The recently announced Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone exemplifies such longer-term hedges against protectionism.
Prime Minister Lawrence Wong has emphasized the gravity of the situation, noting that even if some U.S. tariffs are postponed, the mere possibility of sudden policy shifts creates "great uncertainty" that hampers long-term business planning.
For Singapore SMEs, these developments should spur concrete action. If your supply chain, customer base, or cost structure is exposed to these international developments, now is the time to respond. Companies should use available grants and funds to diversify (e.g., tapping EDG's Market Access support to find new buyers in Southeast Asia) or increase productivity to offset rising costs. The government has enhanced schemes like the Enterprise Financing Scheme – Trade Loan (now offering up to SGD 10 million in credit) to help firms restructure their trade flows.
The real power comes from strategically combining EDG with Budget 2025's initiatives. Here are actionable integration strategies I've seen progressive companies implement:
Consider a financial services firm drowning in manual processes. They could apply for an EDG Innovation & Productivity project to implement AI-driven automation (with 50% cost coverage) while simultaneously joining the Enterprise Compute Initiative. Through ECI, they gain subsidized access to advanced AI tools and expert consultants to optimize their solution.
Meanwhile, they tap into SkillsFuture's new training allowances to upskill staff in data analytics and AI oversight. The result: routine tasks get automated, employees focus on higher-value work, and the company builds a tech-savvy workforce—all with significant government support.
Imagine a manufacturing SME whose U.S. orders have slowed due to tariff uncertainties. They could leverage EDG (Market Access) to hire a consultant for developing an internationalization strategy and marketing campaigns in Southeast Asian countries, with EDG covering half the cost.
Simultaneously, they could tap the Market Readiness Assistance grant for specific activities like business match-making or setting up overseas distributors, with MRA providing 50% support. By monitoring SERT's insights on promising alternative markets or sectors, they could further refine their expansion strategy.
This integrated approach—using multiple funding streams while staying informed by high-level guidance—could help the company offset reduced U.S. sales with new ASEAN revenues, enhancing overall resilience.
A mid-sized food production company grappling with rising energy costs could initiate an EDG Core Capabilities project focused on sustainability strategy. With up to 70% funding support (thanks to the enhanced rate for green projects), they could install IoT sensors and AI analytics to monitor energy and water consumption in real-time.
Complementing this with available green incentives—like enhanced tax deductions under the Pollution Control Equipment scheme—would maximize financial benefits. By project completion, the company might achieve a 15% reduction in electricity use (direct savings) while positioning themselves favorably in an increasingly sustainability-conscious market.
Singapore's robust ecosystem is attracting global partners like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which announced a new Singapore office in 2025 with over USGD 100 million for regional health and development projects.
A healthtech startup working on an affordable medical device for Southeast Asia could design an EDG Innovation project for product development while simultaneously seeking co-funding from the Gates Foundation for implementation in rural communities. This braided funding approach—combining public and philanthropic resources—amplifies impact and extends reach beyond what either source could fund alone.
From my years guiding SMEs through Singapore's financial and regulatory landscape, I've developed several key principles for maximizing grant opportunities:
My approach boils down to this: Integrate, don't isolate. Integrate your strategy with national initiatives, integrate multiple funding sources, and integrate capability-building with day-to-day operations. By doing so, even small enterprises can harness resources on par with much larger players.
Budget 2025 has opened new avenues of support when Singapore's enterprises need it most. The Enterprise Development Grant remains a cornerstone of this support structure—a flexible tool to help businesses upgrade, innovate, and internationalize in alignment with national priorities.
By strategically aligning your EDG project proposals with Budget 2025 initiatives, you can improve your approval odds and amplify benefits. The key is seeing the connections: how automation addresses both your productivity goals and the government's digital economy agenda; how expanding overseas builds resilience against external shocks; how investing in your people goes hand-in-hand with adopting new tech.
In these uncertain times of trade tensions and technological disruption, perhaps the greatest mistake would be to go it alone, ignoring the ecosystem of support available. Those who thrive are usually those who engage—with government schemes, with industry partnerships, and with new ideas.
Take stock of what's available and take initiative. Visit Enterprise Singapore's website or the GoBusiness portal to review Budget 2025 measures and relevant grants. Identify at least one EDG-worthy project that aligns with these initiatives—whether it's AI adoption, sustainability improvements, or market expansion.
By navigating these funding avenues astutely, you can strengthen your company's foundations in 2025 and beyond. The tools are there; it's time to build something great.
Disclaimer: The information in this article is based on Singapore's Budget 2025 announcements and related sources as of mid-2025. For the latest details or scheme specifics, always refer to official sources or consult professional advisors.
Wei Han leads ATHR’s corporate, compliance, and advisory services with extensive experience in establishing Singapore and offshore entities, combining financial expertise and digital innovation to drive business growth.
