Two unlicensed cryptocurrency exchanges escaped Singapore after the HKMA tightens regulation

Zhang Junrong, founder and president of DeFiance Capital, Web3 venture capital fund, pointed out that most of the affected ones are overseas registration platforms, but they have hundreds of employees in Singapore. If they are evacuated, they may cause job losses.

With the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) coming into effect at the end of this month for additional regulatory measures against digital token service providers (DTSPs), two cryptocurrency trading platforms operating in Singapore, Bitget and Bybit, are preparing to withdraw from Singapore.

The HKMA issued a notice on May 30 earlier, requiring all digital token service providers operating in Singapore and providing digital payment tokens (DPTs) and capital market product token services to overseas customers must terminate the relevant activities before June 30.

People familiar with the matter revealed that Bitget plans to transfer its Singapore team to Dubai, Hong Kong and other places, and Bybit is also evaluating a similar restructuring plan. The two companies are ranked in the top 10 in global trading volumes and have operations in Singapore, but have not obtained licenses issued by the HKMA.

The authorities stressed that there will be no transition period and that new licenses will be issued in the future only under "extremely special circumstances".

Bloomberg quoted a spokesman for the HKMA as saying that compliant licensed companies will not be affected. The authorities have repeatedly reiterated their position on unlicensed operators and the above notice should not surprise the industry.