The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) announced on April 2 that it will revise the Payment Services Act and its subsidiary legislation to expand the regulatory scope of payment services.
Table of Contents
Toggle
Singapore enhances regulation of “digital payment tokens”
Former MAS advisor: Improving regulatory clarity
Singapore enhances regulation of “digital payment tokens”
The amendments are expected to be implemented in phases starting from April 4 and will expand the regulatory scope for operators of digital payment tokens (DPT) to include:
Providing DPT custody services.
Facilitating cross-border remittance, even if funds are not received or paid in Singapore.
Facilitating DPT transfers and exchanges, even if the operator itself does not hold the related funds or DPT.
Imposing requirements on DPT service providers for anti-money laundering, countering the financing of terrorism, user protection, and financial stability.
MAS stated that it will provide transitional arrangements for entities within the regulatory scope. Such entities are required to notify MAS within 30 days after April 4 and submit a license application within 6 months to continue operating during the license review period.
Advertisement – Continue reading below
Additionally, operators are required to submit externally audited anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism compliance reports within 9 months after the application. Operators who fail to comply must cease relevant activities immediately after the amendments come into effect.
(
MAS prohibits retail leveraged foreign exchange trading and credit card crypto payments
)
Former MAS advisor: Improving regulatory clarity
In recent months, many cryptocurrency exchanges have obtained licenses or received in-principle approval in Singapore, and it is unclear how the expanded regulatory scope in Singapore will impact them:
10/2
: Coinbase obtains major payment institution license in Singapore, considers it a priority market
11/16
: Paxos receives in-principle approval from MAS, plans to launch a new USD stablecoin
11/17
: XREX receives in-principle approval for a Singapore Payment Institution license, expanding support for different currencies
3/13
: OKX receives in-principle approval for a Major Payment Institution license (MPI) from MAS
However, according to The Block, Angela Ang, former Deputy Director of Payment Services Regulation at MAS and current Senior Policy Advisor at TRM Labs, is optimistic about these regulatory changes:
This amendment, which has been in progress since 2021, will bring much-anticipated regulatory clarity to Singapore’s cryptocurrency custody providers.
Kelvin Low, a legal advisor, also mentioned that these regulatory updates were expected, and if they were to impact cryptocurrency companies, they would have already exited Singapore.
DPT
Cryptocurrency payment
Singapore