Is Singapore rushing to stay ahead in digital asset hub race with spate of new licences?

Mr Adrian Chng, founder and chief executive of digital asset fund manager Fintonia Group, noted that MAS was earlier focused on building a new regulatory regime for the industry.

SINGAPORE - At least five digital asset players have received nods from the Singapore regulator within a span of two weeks in October, prompting observations from some in the industry that the Republic is moving to stay ahead of the competition in the crypto hub race.

Market players noted that the full licences and in-principle approvals (IPAs) were given out ahead of the Singapore FinTech Festival week, a key event that starts on Nov 15, and the Hong Kong equivalent, which began on Monday.

Mr Adrian Chng, founder and chief executive of digital asset fund manager Fintonia Group, noted that the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) was earlier focused on consultation papers and building a new regulatory regime for market players after the spate of crypto bankruptcies in 2022.

“I think its approach and response were mostly complete by the middle of this year, which gave more clarity to allow the processing of applications to begin again,” he said.

Mr David Tng, managing director of Web3 ecosystem builder TZ APAC, attributed the surge in IPAs and licences to more regulatory clarity.

The rules relating to safeguarding customer assets and ensuring stablecoin stability are seen as encouraging not only by crypto companies, but also by the broader financial ecosystem that is now more inclined to explore the blockchain sector, he added.

In the first two weeks of October, crypto exchange Coinbase, crypto bank Sygnum and blockchain payment network Ripple said they were granted full licences from MAS.

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