Singapore Vows to Become Crypto Asset Hub Without Cryptocurrency Trading, Speculations
Editor
5 November 2022 14:15 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Singapore - Singapore wants to be a crypto asset hub but does not accept trading and speculations in cryptocurrencies, said Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), at the Singapore Fintech Festival (SFF) 2022 which concluded on Friday, Nov. 4.
Menon said Singapore wants to be a crypto hub for experimenting with programable money, applying digital assets for use cases like atomic settlement, and tokenizing real and financial assets to increase efficiency and reduce risks in financial transactions.
This is the third time in about three months for MAS to showcase its policy stance on digital assets and crypto assets.
Menon said in late August that many items with value, including financial assets like cash and bonds, real assets like artwork and property, and even intangible items like carbon credits and computing resources, can potentially be tokenized and become digital assets.
When deployed on distributed ledgers, digital assets are referred to as crypto assets. MAS wants to make Singapore one of the most conducive and facilitative jurisdictions for digital assets. At the same time, it wants Singapore to be one of the most comprehensive in managing the risks of digital assets, and among the strictest in areas like discouraging retail investments in cryptocurrencies.
In late October, MAS published two consultation papers proposing regulatory measures to reduce the risk of consumer harm from cryptocurrency trading and to support the development of stablecoins as a credible medium of exchange in the digital asset ecosystem.
Despite its unsupportive attitude towards retail investment in cryptocurrencies and strict supervision, MAS does not ban cryptocurrency business in Singapore totally.
