Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Advises Retail Investors to Steer Clear of Cryptocurrencies – Regulation Bitcoin News

Singapore’s deputy prime minister has advised retail investors to steer clear of cryptocurrencies, citing that they are “highly risky.” He stressed, “We cannot express this enough.”

Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Warns About Crypto

Singapore’s Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat reportedly warned retail investors against investing in cryptocurrency Tuesday while speaking at the Asia Tech x Singapore (ATxSG) summit. He claimed:

Particularly retail investors should avoid cryptocurrencies. It is difficult to express how much we agree with this sentiment.

To support his claim, he cited the fall of cryptoterra (LUNA), and algorithmic stablecoin terrausd(UST). When the two currencies crashed, many investors suffered huge losses.

While cautioning that cryptocurrency is “highly risky,” the deputy prime minister stated that digital dollars could transform finance.

Keat stated that regulation of crypto currencies is important as well.

It is important that we continue to improve our regulatory framework to keep innovation at its best and address key risk associated with crypto assets.

Singapore has adopted strict rules on crypto, with the country’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), as the main regulator of the crypto sector. Numerous people applied for a license from the MAS in order to open a crypto-exchange. Approximately 100 businesses have not met the requirements of regulators.

The MAS has granted only 11 licenses and in principle approvals over the last two years to digital payment token service provider. “We will continue to evaluate applications, and facilitate live experiments through regulatory sandboxes, to enable safe adoption in the financial sector,” the deputy prime minister detailed.

In April, the central bank stated that it needed to make sure its licensing process for providers of digital assets services was strict. “It needs to be because we want to be a responsible global crypto hub with innovative players, but also with strong risk management capabilities,” the MAS explained.

Following the MAS announcement, January saw cryptocurrency ATMs in India close down. Crypto ads were also banned by the central bank earlier in the year. They stressed that cryptocurrency trading was not appropriate for general audiences.

What do you think about the comments by Singapore’s deputy prime minister? Please leave your comments below.

Kevin Helms

Kevin is a graduate of Austrian Economics. He discovered Bitcoin in 2011, and has been an advocate ever since. His main interests are in Bitcoin security, open source systems, network effects, cryptography, and intersections between economics, cryptography, and Cryptography.