# Bankrupt property agent admits to faking sales to get advance commissions

- **Source:** Channel NewsAsia
- **Published:** 2026-09-08T07:01:48.000Z
- **Author:** Lydia Lam
- **Original:** https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/bankrupt-property-agent-faked-sales-commission-6369021
- **Topics:** Transactions & Deals

## Featured rationale

The fraud highlights transaction-verification and intermediary risks in advance-commission arrangements, potentially prompting agencies and financing providers to tighten controls and increasing agents’ due-diligence obligations.

## AI summary

Former ERA agent Cheong En Kiong admitted faking property sales to obtain advance commissions, including S$91,653 tied to a purported S$11 million Prudential Tower transaction.

## Original article

SINGAPORE: A bankrupt property agent faked sales in order to get advance commissions, tricking fellow agents into helping him, and leaving them to pay the debts. Cheong En Kiong, a 51-year-old Singaporean, pleaded guilty on Tuesday (Sep 8) to four charges which include forgery, cheating and receiving benefits from criminal conduct. Several other charges will be considered in sentencing. The court heard that Cheong has been an undischarged bankrupt since 2019. He is obligated to make monthly payments to his creditors, and he also owed money to his friends and unlicensed moneylenders. At the time of the offences, Cheong was a real estate agent with ERA Real Estate Singapore. As of Tuesday, he is no longer listed on the Council for Estate Agencies' public register. THE S$11 MILLION PROPERTY In June 2022, Cheong asked a 38-year-old real estate agent he had known for a decade to be the co-broker for the sale of a property in Prudential Tower. The woman was recovering from injuries from an accident at the time. Cheong chose the property at 30 Cecil Street as it was worth about S$11 million (US$8.7 million) and would yield higher advance commissions. Cheong told the woman, named only as A1 in court papers, that he needed money urgently and said he was unable to make a submission for advance commission from LytePay. LytePay is licensed by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and disburses advance commissions to real estate agents in exchange for processing fees. It works by first delivering advance commissions to real estate agents. When the seller of the property pays the commission due to the real estate agent's company, the company then deducts the advance commission already received by the real estate agent and repays the remainder to LytePay. Cheong told A1 that she would receive S$5,000 of commission for co-broking. He said he would cover and include her Medisave and income tax for the sale. A1 believed Cheong was extending her a genuine opportunity and agreed. She had no experience with such a large sale before and Cheong told her he would prepare the documents for her to submit on LytePay. Cheong forged the signatures in several documents including an option to purchase and a seller's commission agreement. A1 then submitted the documents to LytePay, requesting an advance commission. LytePay delivered S$91,653 to A1, who deducted her share and transferred about S$83,500 to Cheong. Cheong used the money to settle his debts. Six months later, ERA discovered that the purported buyer had not sent the agency their commission for the sale. It discovered Cheong's fraudulent actions after an internal investigation and issued him with a warning. ERA asked A1 and Cheong to repay the full advance commission of S$91,653 that LytePay delivered. To date, Cheong has paid only about S$10,000 to S$12,000 of this sum and A1 had to bear the remaining amount. She also received a statutory demand from LytePay, which deducted her commission on other sold properties to offset the amount owed. A1 has tried asking Cheong to repay her the full amount multiple times, to no avail, the prosecutor said. THE LUCKY PLAZA PROPERTY Despite receiving a warning from ERA, Cheong offended again. In October 2025, he went to the home of a former customer who was then aged 69, named B1 in court documents. He lied that there was a buyer for a commercial property in Lucky Plaza owned by B1. He then said he needed B1's signature to exercise the option to purchase. B1 signed on some blank documents. Cheong then deceived his friend, a 63-year-old OrangeTee & Tie real estate agent with prostate cancer, into co-brokering the sale with him. He said he needed money urgently due to his debts and business losses, and his friend agreed to help, thinking the unit was genuinely being sold. Cheong forged signatures in some of the required documents and handed them to his friend, who submitted the documents to OrangeTee, requesting an advance commission via LytePay. LytePay delivered S$7,955 to Cheong's friend, who gave S$4,700 to Cheong. Cheong had also deceived his friend into co-brokering a sale of a unit at Prudential Tower in July 2025, once again receiving an advance commission from LytePay. OrangeTee later sent a letter of reminder to the purported seller of the Prudential Tower unit, saying the company owed OrangeTee about SS$135,300 in agency fees. A director of the company informed OrangeTee that the company had not, in fact, sold the unit. OrangeTee conducted internal investigations and discovered the fraudulent transactions done by Cheong for both the Prudential unit and the Lucky Plaza unit. The company fired Cheong's friend and made him bear the total amount of advance commission he received from both sales – a sum of about S$86,000. Those involved lodged police reports in October 2025. To date, Cheong has made no restitution to OrangeTee, his friend, or to LytePay. He has been remanded since early April this year. The prosecutor sought 24.5 to 28 months' jail, saying that Cheong exploited his own friends who trusted him. He left them "saddled with substantial financial obligations to LytePay", obligations which he would have understood as a bankrupt of several years' standing, said Deputy Public Prosecutor Kelly Ng. Defence lawyer Riko Isaac from Riko Isaac Legal sought 18.5 to 21.5 months' jail instead. He said his client had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity and fully cooperated with the authorities. The case was adjourned to October for sentencing. For cheating or forgery to commit cheating, he could be jailed for up to 10 years and fined. For acquiring property that are the benefits of criminal conduct, he could be jailed for up to 10 years, fined up to S$500,000, or

## Chinese translation

> Translation model: grok_cli

### 破产房产经纪承认伪造交易以套取预支佣金

其中一起案件中，另一名房产经纪不得不偿还一笔因虚假交易发放的全额预支佣金新币91,653元中的大部分。

新加坡：一名破产房产经纪伪造交易以套取预支佣金，诱骗同行经纪帮忙，并让他们承担债务。Cheong En Kiong是一名51岁新加坡人，于星期二（9月8日）承认四项控状，包括伪造、欺诈及收受犯罪得益。其他若干控状将在量刑时一并考虑。法庭听审得知，Cheong自2019年起一直是未获解除破产令的破产人。他有义务每月向债权人还款，同时还欠朋友和无牌放贷人的钱。案发时，Cheong是ERA Real Estate Singapore的房产经纪。截至星期二，他已不在房地产代理理事会的公开名册上。这套新币1100万元的房产 2022年6月，Cheong要求一名相识十年的38岁房产经纪，作为Prudential Tower一处房产出售的共同经纪。当时这名女子正从一场事故的伤势中康复。Cheong选择位于30 Cecil Street的这处房产，因为它价值约新币1100万元（美元870万元），能带来更高的预支佣金。Cheong告诉这名在法庭文件中仅称为A1的女子，他急需用钱，并称自己无法向LytePay提交预支佣金申请。LytePay由新加坡金融管理局发牌，向房产经纪发放预支佣金，并收取手续费。其运作方式是先向房产经纪发放预支佣金。待房产卖方将应付佣金支付给经纪所属公司后，公司再扣除经纪已收取的预支佣金，并将余款偿还给LytePay。Cheong告诉A1，她将因共同经纪获得新币5,000元佣金。他说会为这笔交易承担并计入她的保健储蓄（Medisave）和所得税。A1相信Cheong是在给她一个真正的机会，于是同意了。她此前没有经手过如此大宗交易的经验，Cheong告诉她会准备文件供她向LytePay提交。Cheong在包括购买期权和卖方佣金协议在内的多份文件上伪造签名。A1随后将文件提交给LytePay，申请预支佣金。LytePay向A1发放新币91,653元，她扣除自己的份额后，将约新币83,500元转给Cheong。Cheong用这笔钱偿还债务。六个月后，ERA发现所谓买家并未向该行支付这笔交易的佣金。内部调查后发现了Cheong的欺诈行为，并向他发出警告。ERA要求A1和Cheong偿还LytePay发放的全额预支佣金新币91,653元。至今，Cheong仅偿还了其中约新币10,000元至12,000元，余款须由A1承担。她还收到LytePay的法定要求偿债书，该公司扣除她其他已售房产的佣金以抵销欠款。检方称，A1多次要求Cheong偿还全额，均无结果。Lucky Plaza的房产 尽管已收到ERA警告，Cheong再次犯罪。2025年10月，他前往一名当时69岁、法庭文件中称为B1的前客户家中。他谎称有买家要购买B1名下Lucky Plaza的一处商业房产。随后他说需要B1签名以行使购买期权。B1在一些空白文件上签了名。Cheong接着欺骗他的朋友——一名患有前列腺癌、现年63岁的OrangeTee & Tie房产经纪——与他共同经纪这笔交易。他说因债务和生意亏损急需用钱，朋友以为单位确实在出售，便同意帮忙。Cheong在部分所需文件上伪造签名后交给朋友，后者将文件提交给OrangeTee，通过LytePay申请预支佣金。LytePay向Cheong的朋友发放新币7,955元，后者将新币4,700元交给Cheong。Cheong还在2025年7月欺骗这名朋友共同经纪Prudential Tower一个单位的出售，再次从LytePay获得预支佣金。OrangeTee后来向Prudential Tower单位的所谓卖方发出催款信，称该公司欠OrangeTee约新币135,300元中介费。该公司一名董事告知OrangeTee，公司实际上并未出售该单位。OrangeTee展开内部调查，发现Cheong就Prudential单位和Lucky Plaza单位进行的欺诈交易。该公司解雇了Cheong的朋友，并让他承担两笔交易收到的全部预支佣金——约新币86,000元。相关人士于2025年10月报警。至今，Cheong未向OrangeTee、他的朋友或LytePay作出任何赔偿。他自今年4月初起被还押。检方寻求判处24.5至28个月监禁，称Cheong利用了信任他的朋友。副检察司Kelly Ng说，他让他们“背上对LytePay的巨额财务义务”，作为已破产数年的人，他本应理解这些义务。Riko Isaac Legal的辩护律师Riko Isaac则寻求判处18.5至21.5个月监禁。他说当事人在最早时机认罪，并全力配合当局。案件押后至10月判刑。欺诈或为欺诈而伪造，最高可判监禁10年及罚款。获取属于犯罪得益的财产，最高可判监禁10年、罚款最高新币500,000元，或