The announcement to cease trading in Singapore dollar (SGD) followed a notice by the Monetary Authority of Singapore, which oversees the crypto industry in the country
Global cryptocurrency exchange Binance announced Sunday that it will roll back product offerings in Singapore amid warnings from financial regulators that the company may have violated payments laws.
Beginning Sept. 9, Singaporeans will no longer be able to trade cryptocurrencies or receive payments denominated in the Singapore dollar (SGD), according to a Sunday blog post. The Binance mobile app will also be removed from Singapore’s Apple and Google Play stores.
The exchange said all SGD trading pairs will be removed at 04:00 UTC on Sept. 9, with users advised to complete all peer-to-peer trades 24 hours in advance of the deadline.
The announcement to cease trading in SGD followed a notice by Singapore’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), which oversees the crypto industry in the country.
Our aim is to create a sustainable ecosystem around blockchain technology and digital assets, Binance commented, elaborating: Binance welcomes developments to our industry’s regulatory framework as they pose opportunities for the market players to have greater collaboration with the regulators.
Last week, Binance said it hired Richard Teng, former CEO of the Financial Services Regulatory Authority at Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) as the new CEO for its operations in Singapore. Binance aims to become a leader in regulatory compliance as it pivots into a financial services company.
The decision by Binance to halt certain product offerings came mere days after the Monetary Authority of Singapore, or MAS, warned that the exchange may be in breach of the country’s Payment Services Act. Binance first appeared on the regulator’s investor alert list on Sept. 1. The list includes “unregulated persons who, based on information received by MAS, may have been wrongly perceived as being licensed or regulated by MAS.”
