Singapore crypto exchanges are seeing better times now as the country has put measures in place for the expansion of these companies. Singapore crypto exchanges are going to be able to apply for licenses as the country’s payment service act will be coming to effect soon.
Singapore’s Parliament passed the Payment Services, Bill, into law, creating the Payment Services Act with the new law coming into effect on Tuesday (January 28, 2020). Alongside the bill, Singapore crypto exchanges are allowed to apply for their licenses with MAS as the new law allows regulatory bodies the power to monitor and supervise activities in the crypto space.
Contained in the law are two regulatory frameworks which are the payment systems designation and the licensing requirements. The two regulatory frameworks are expected to help the MAS in overseeing crypto and other payment systems under a unified regulatory paradigm.
Singapore crypto exchanges join Malaysia
Sherry Goh, the general manager for Luno Singapore in an interview with Blomberg lauded the development. He acknowledged that the new law provides regulatory certainty to industry players but, more importantly, it provides consumers with a clear sense of the players they can trust.
Luno and Liquid inc. are said to be some of the companies looking to apply for a license under the new regulatory frameworks. With this new development, Singapore has joined Malaysia in becoming the latest country in Southeast Asia to create a legal basis for crypto exchange platforms.
This move is coming at a time when the digital currency is being accepted in the region. Meanwhile in earlier in January, Malaysian regulators banned crypto initial coin offerings (ICOs) while issuing regulations for initial exchange offerings (IEOs).
Crypto regulators to rule with an iron fist
Owing to concerns of money laundering via crypto channels, the Payment Services Act also includes protocols for forensic crypto tracking. According to Loo Siew Yee, Assistant Managing Director of the MAS, regulators in Singapore aim to use the new law as a basis for improving consumer protection protocols in the digital payments space.
Yee said that the new regulatory framework is both “activity-based” and “risk-focused.” The MAS Assistant Managing Director declared that regulators will apply the rules in a fair and balanced manner.
