More than a hundred organisations that applied for a licence to provide cryptocurrency services in Singapore were either denied or withdrew their applications. The Monetary Authority of Singapore(MAS), the country's central bank, claimed that "because of the speed and cross-border nature of the transactions, cryptocurrencies could be abused for money laundering, terrorism financing, or proliferation financing".

Tough Crypto Regulation in Singapore

About 170 companies have sought for a licence to offer "digital payment token services," which includes crypto-related services, since Singapore began regulating the crypto sector.

However, more than a hundred companies that applied for a licence were either been turned down or or withdrawn their applications, Nikkei Asia reported Monday.

Exemptions were provided to companies that were operating in the country prior to the licencing regime's implementation while their licence applications were completed. In July, Tharman Shanmugaratnam, a senior minister, told parliament that 90 companies were functioning under similar exemptions.

A spokeswoman for the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the country's central bank and and regulator of the crypto sector, told the news outlet: "Due to the general speed and cross-border nature of cryptocurrency transactions, it could be abused for money laundering, terrorism financing, or proliferation financing.” The spokesperson elaborated:

In Singapore, digital payment token service providers must comply with requirements to mitigate such risks, including  the need to carry out proper customer due diligence, regular account reviews, and the monitoring and reporting of suspicious transactions.

Only DBS Vickers Securities, a unit of DBS Group Holdings, Southeast Asia's largest bank; digital payments startup FOMO Pay; and Australia's Independent Reserve are currently mentioned as licenced businesses on the MAS website. The MAS announced in November that Singapore aspires to become a global crypto powerhouse.

"We are growing extremely quickly," said DBS's head of capital markets and chairperson of the bank's crypto exchange in September. Cryptocurrencies and digital assets are increasingly becoming more popular among investors."

Binance was forced by the national bank to halt providing cryptocurrency services to residents in September. Binance stated last week that its Singapore platform will be closing down.

The cause for the closing of Binance's Singaporean exchange, Changpeng Zhao, the company's CEO, says (CZ), was an 18 percent investment in Hg Exchange (HGX), a regulated securities exchange in Singapore. The true reason, according to Bloomberg, is that Binance failed to meet the conditions for a licence to operate a crypto exchange.