The Association of Cryptocurrency Enterprises and Startups, Singapore (ACCESS), has an initial pilot implementation of the new Code of Practice heling these services for paid license.
With this, a more open and future-forward plans are underway for the mentioned country.
Digital payments and token will now be required to have the license has been mandatory for any entity looking to provide specified payment services, because of Singapore’s Payment Services saw its birth in January of this year.
Through this, the ACCESS supported the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) — the country’s central bank and regulatory authority — in preparing the new code of practice.
It also has speaking terms with the Association of Banks in Singapore to help finalize better and relevant approaches, and establish clear, practical regulatory guidance for successful license applications.
Case in point, ACCESS hopes to provide crypto industry players with a standardized and detailed guide to Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism best practices.
The code, in the meantime, has taken two years to be finalized and would cater to the provisions and licensing guidelines of the Payment Services Act, as well as the Financial Action Task Force’s travel rule.
In terms of a global framework, the firms are expected to step up their regulatory compliance in line with traditional financial institutions’ expectations.
On the other hand, MAS’ chief fintech officer, Sopnendu Mohanty, quipped that the central bank is “pleased that ACCESS has successfully launched the Code of Practice after close industry collaboration and public consultation.”
He said he added that the “Blockchain and other digital technologies have the potential to transform the payments services landscape […] The challenge for MAS and other financial regulators is to ensure that the risks these new technologies pose are well-managed while allowing innovation to continue to flourish.”
Singapore is one of the few countries that have broadly responded proactively to Singaporean regulators’ efforts to bring cryptocurrency firms inside the scope of Anti Money-Laundering regulation.
Furthermore, they argue that the immediate transition period, during which firms will have to comply with the set-in-place standard rules, will prosper in the long run and provide firms with an enhanced reputation and future growth opportunities.
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