- The authorities also extended strict restrictions for crypto-exchanges
- They obliged them to keep client funds in special trusts
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has obliged crypto-exchanges to extend the placement of client funds in trusts until the end of the year.. They continued a special protection program that has been in place since the fall of FTX.
The authorities also want to consider banning retail lending and collateral in cryptocurrencies. This bill has been under study since last October, before the FTX story.
In its press release, MAS writes about the need to tighten the regulatory regime for digital assets.
“The current rules cannot protect consumers from all losses given the extremely high risk and speculative nature of digital payment token trading.”
The department also reminded citizens to exercise “extreme caution” when trading cryptocurrencies.
The new tightening goes against the recent crypto-friendly initiatives of Singapore. On June 21, the Monetary Authority published a proposal for a common protocol that defines the terms of use for various types of digital money, including CBDC.
The new concept is called Purpose Bound Money (“purpose tokens”). The project is designed to allow senders to specify cryptocurrency transaction terms, including expiration dates and vault types, across systems.