The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) recently provided clear guidance on its regulatory framework for Digital Token Service Providers (DTSPs), amid widespread industry concerns over a potential ban on crypto firms servicing overseas clients.
In an official announcement released on June 6, MAS reiterated that, starting June 30, crypto institutions providing services related to digital payment tokens and capital market product tokens exclusively to clients outside of Singapore "will need to obtain a license."
However, the regulator sternly warned that such licenses will only be issued in "very limited circumstances."
"MAS has set a very high bar for licensing and will generally not issue licenses," the regulator stated, noting that the difficulties in supervising overseas entities and the risks of money laundering are core considerations.
"MAS cannot effectively regulate such entities," the regulator further emphasized. Therefore, businesses that cannot obtain a license "must cease their regulated business activities."
When MAS set June 30 as the deadline for local crypto service providers to stop offering digital token services to overseas markets earlier this month, the entire crypto market was highly attentive to this move.
The new regulations have triggered industry changes. The crypto exchange WazirX, which targets Indian users but is headquartered in Singapore, announced it would relocate its operations to Panama, following MAS's announcement of the deadline.
At the time of the deadline announcement, Hagen Rooke, a partner at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, pointed out that licenses would only be issued in very few cases. He stated on LinkedIn, "MAS will grant licenses under the new framework only in extremely limited circumstances (as such operating models typically raise regulatory concerns, such as anti-money laundering/anti-terrorism financing issues)."
Recent actions by Singapore's regulatory authorities indicate an intention to implement stricter oversight of the local crypto industry. Today's announcement clearly states that crypto companies servicing Singaporean clients "are already subject to existing regulations," thus expanding the regulatory scope to those servicing overseas clients. However, MAS noted that not all crypto-related services are affected: "Institutions providing other types of token-related services, such as those serving only as utility and governance tokens, are not subject to licensing or regulatory constraints under the new regime and are therefore unaffected."
The shift in Singapore's regulatory policy comes after reports in May indicated that digital assets are widely popular in the country. Awareness of crypto in Singapore has reached an all-time high, with a recent survey showing that 94% of respondents reported being familiar with at least one digital asset.
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Original: “Singapore Confirms Near Ban on Foreign-Only Digital Token Services”
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