Coinbase Gains Digital Payment Token License in Singapore
- The in-principle approval from MAS will allow Coinbase to launch its full suite of retail, institutional, and ecosystem products in Singapore.
- The exchange has been quietly expanding in presence in Singapore, and has already invested in over 15 crypto startups and hired around 100 employees in the city state.
Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong speaking at TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2018. Steve Jennings/Getty Images for TechCrunch
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has given crypto exchange Coinbase an in-principle approval to provide a variety of crypto services in the city state, the company said in a press release on 10 October.
According to the announcement, the newly acquired major payments institution license enables Coindesk to offer regulated Digital Payment Token (DPT) products and services to the citizens of Singapore. While the exchange was already providing some services in the city state under a MAS exemption, the in-principal approval will allow it to look for new partnerships with local platforms and expand its fiat capabilities in the region. Coinbase said in the press release:
“Gaining this in-principle approval from MAS is an important step, as we plan to launch our full suite of retail, institutional and ecosystem products. Singapore plays a critical regulatory and commercial role in APAC and beyond, and serves as our global talent hub; we are excited to continue investing and building for the crypto economy here.”
The exchange underlined the importance of Singapore — which serves as Coinbase’s Asia hub for institutional business — by noting it was the top financial center in Asia, and the third in the world after New York and London. The company has been increasing its presence in Singapore for some time now, having employed a large number of people in the city as well as investing in over 15 Singapore-based crypto startups over the past three years.
Coinbase is among the few crypto companies who were able to obtain an approval from MAS to provide DPT services under the Payment Services Act in Singapore, with some of the other being Paxos, Crypto.com, and DBS Vicker. Binance, on the other hand, was one of the exchanges to give up on the Singapore license, and in December 2021 pulled out its application with the MAS.
- A little over $13 million in altcoins were sent to crypto exchanges Binance and Coinbase in the past 24 hours, which is in accordance with a September court order.
- The court ordered a phased liquidation process, which allows the bankruptcy estate to sell $3.4 billion worth of digital assets over a certain period of time.
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- Germany’s largest bank will use Taurus’ custody and tokenization technology to manage the cryptocurrencies, tokenized assets, and digital assets of its clients.
- Deutsche Bank was one of a few companies to participate in Taurus’ $65 million Series B fundraising round back in February, which was led by Credit Suisse.
- Coinbase’s Base blockchain was made available to the public on Wednesday, featuring over 100 dApps and services as part of its ecosystem.
- In order to show its capabilities and promote its mainnet partners, Base has also launched an event called “Onchain Summer” that will allow users to mint exclusive NFTs on the network.