CNA Explains: Singapore’s tightened crypto licensing rules – ‘closing the door’ or ‘raising the bar’?
How will firms be affected?
As of Jun 19, MAS has granted digital payment token licences to 33 institutions, including major players like Coinbase and OKX, under the Payment Services Act.
For digital token service providers that only serve overseas markets, they can apply for a local licence – but MAS has said that it has “set the bar high” and will “generally not issue” one.
Bitget and Bybit are among the top ten exchange operators by volume that do not have a Singapore licence.
A Bloomberg report said Bitget will relocate staff to jurisdictions such as Dubai and Hong Kong, and that Bybit has plans to follow suit.
But experts pointed out that it is the smaller firms that will feel the heat.
While larger firms have…
