Our weekly roundup of news from East Asia curates the industry’s most important developments.
SGX boss says Singapore ‘not ready’ for Bitcoin ETFs
While several nations have approved the listing of cryptocurrency-based exchange-traded funds, Singapore, a key financial hub in Asia, is apparently not ready.
SGX CEO Chye speaks at Reuter’s NEXT conference. (Reuters)
Singapore Exchange (SGX) CEO Loh Boon Chye said so in a conference hosted by Reuters on July 9, stating that SGX is currently not open to crypto listings.
“The ecosystem, I feel, at this point in time, is not ready for such products in Singapore,” said Loh.
Singapore is often considered a rival to Hong Kong as both cities are global financial centers that strive to offer the most favorable business environment through regulation and tax incentives.
Hong Kong has already launched Asia’s first spot Bitcoin and Ether ETFs, a few months after the spot Bitcoin ETFs made their debut in the United States, the world’s largest economy.
Like Hong Kong, Singapore has expressed ambitions to become a hub for crypto businesses and has handed out more permits than its rival.
As of today, Singapore has green-lighted 24 digital payment token licenses, a permit that allows businesses to provide crypto services, including trading and custody.
Philippines charges two in $6 million crypto exchange XRP theft
The Philippines’ Department of Justice has filed criminal charges against two former consultants of Coins.ph, who allegedly hacked the crypto exchange in October last year, allowing them to steal $6 million in XRP from a hot wallet.
The pair, identified as Vladimir Evgenevich Avdeev and Sergey Yaschuck, worked as consultants for Coins.ph.
The exchange is licensed by the Philippines central bank to provide crypto trading and custody services to 16 million users.
Their pair’s tenure allowed them access to Coins.ph’s…
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