Singapore’s latest order for cryptographic companies without license to stop serving customers abroad marks the start of the end for regulatory gaps in the blockchain industry.
The May 30 Directive of the Singapore Monetary Authority (Mas) indicates to companies and individuals of cryptography offering services abroad to obtain a license or out.
For some in the industry, it may seem that Singapore suddenly turns away from its friendly position. But in reality, the city-state has remained consistent in its compliance push. This decision aligns with a global repression aimed at whitening and finance terrorism.
“For exchanges that always play at the regulatory freak – in constant research of gaps to avoid license requirements – reality is clear: they soon find themselves to move to their favorite destination, the moon,” said Joshua Chu, a lawyer and co -president of the city of the city.
“With jurisdictions like Singapore, Thailand, Dubai, Hong Kong and others tightening surveillance and filling the gaps, there is simply no exhaust of the global push for compliance.”
Exiled to Singapore, cryptographic nomads lack road
Singapore was a favorable center for regulatory arbitration in crypto, thanks to its payment services law (PSA), which requires a license for companies serving local customers.
With a national population relatively small by around 6 million, many cryptographic companies have chosen to circumvent licenses by simply avoiding Singaporean customers and by focusing on markets abroad, noted YK Pek, CEO and co-founder of the Legal Technology GVRN, on X.
While some interpret the recent move of the MAS to oust the unlimited cryptographic companies under the 2022 financial and market (FSMA) law on a narrow deadline as a clear policy inversion, the regulator said it had maintained a stable position.
“Mas’ position on this subject has been constantly communicated for a few years since the first response to the public consultation published on February 14, 2022 and in the publications following October 4, 2024 and May 3025,” the central bank said in a press release of June 6.
The FSMA declares that any Singapore company offering digital tokens services to customers abroad must be under license. The law has not been changed. Rather, the MAS has carried out public consultations and informs service providers that their mandate without license is completed.
“I think we have to recognize that Singapore is above all a global financial center, not necessarily a crypto,” said Patrick Tan, lawyer general of Chainargos, who was one of the respondents of the Mas consultation, at Cointelegraph.
“Given the more stringent cryptocurrency license conditions in the world, organizations will have to think about what they seek to obtain from a license,” he added.
Hong Kong offers no guarantee for Singapore Crypto Parias
While companies weigh their next blow, speculation is developing on what the courts could become more attractive. Recent developments suggest that Singapore is not an aberrant value but is part of a change in global regulation.
The Philippines, for example, now require all enforced cryptography companies to maintain a physical office in the country. Thailand has recently expelled at least five exchanges on license and money laundering concerns, giving investors until June 28 to move their assets.
A destination that has become an option is Hong Kong, the regional rival of Singapore. The two jurisdictions are frequently compared in the so-called cryptographic race.
Hong Kong is also taken into account by Bybit, one of the recently expelled discussion of Thailand. A publication of employment by Bybit asking for a license lawyer in Hong Kong appeared only a few days after the Securities and Exchange committee of Thailand announced that the company would be blocked.
A Bybit spokesperson confirmed to Cointelegraph that Hong Kong is one of the courts considered for future licenses, adding that the company “works with regulators in different countries”. The exchange also hires a similar role in Malaysia.
The industry learns that being a “crypto center” often means to face tighter but clear regulatory frameworks. Neither Hong Kong nor Singapore adopted an approach to a faire. In fact, Hong Kong moved earlier, commanding all licensed exchanges to leave the market in mid-2024.
Companies seeking to pivot in Hong Kong can see that fewer companies have managed to ensure licenses. As of June 6, the city had only issued 10 cryptography licenses, against 33 digital payment token licenses approved by MAS under the PSA.
“Looking at the future, we imminently foresee the regulatory actions of other major cryptography centers, notably Hong Kong, the European Union with its MICA framework (Markets in Crypto-Asets), members of the Evolutionary Crypto of the United Kingdom with mature or mature regulatory regulations,” said CHU.
Singapore is one of the 40 members of the GAFI
The Singapore FSMA has expanded the regulatory monitoring of cryptographic service providers, in particular those who serve customers abroad. The law supplements the PSA and has been partly introduced to align with the mandates of the Financial Action Working Group (FATF) on the travel rule and anti-flowage standards (AML).
The pace of the regulatory alignment has accelerated after the FATF’s plenary session of the FATF, which launched public consultations on improving the transparency of payments and the fight against complex trails used for money laundering and sanctions.
“Dubai (Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority) published its rules of rules 2.0 shortly after the plenary, imposing lighter LMA protocols with a deadline for conformity in June (19), reflecting its cautious approach after the withdrawal of the gray list,” said CHU.
For FATF members such as Singapore and Hong Kong, LMA tightening standards are expected. But for non-members that are not compliance, inclusion on the list of fat gray can be economically devastating. For example, a report by Think Tank Tabadlab estimated that Pakistan’s placement on the list of Gaff Grays between 2008 and 2019 led to cumulative losses of real interior products of around 38 billion dollars.
The president of FATF, Elisa of Anda Madrazo, of Mexico, has established standards for strengthening virtual assets, one of the priorities of her two -year term. Source: Fatf / YouTube
In addition to the recently tightening of their cryptographic regulation, another common denominator among Thailand, the Philippines and the United Arab Emirates is their elimination from the GAFA gray list. Thailand was struck off in 2013, the United Arab Emirates in 2024 and the Philippines in 2025. According to CHU, the jurisdictions that come out of the gray list often work “very difficult” to stay outside.
Dubai, the financial center emerge from water, was a magnet for cryptographic companies because of its friendly rules and its devoted regulator, but legal experts warn against the misunderstanding of the ecosystem.
“Dubai has just come down (the gray list) not so long ago and appears on the probation list,” said CHU. “So the characters who think they are safe in Dubai could be a little false feeling of security.”
This means that the era of jumping jurisdictions to dodge the regulations are coming to an end. While cryptographic companies are looking for their next basis, the list of friendly but indulgent destinations shrinks, and even the most welcoming centers require compliance.
