- Singapore continues to advance itself as a hub for digital assets as the island country’s central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore , has granted blockchain payments firm Ripple in-principle regulatory approval to offer digital asset payments and token products in the city-state.
This is a notable achievement for Ripple as the MAS has granted fewer than 20 in-principle approvals and licenses to date, providing an opportunity for the company to establish a foothold in the Asia Pacific region. “As a result of this monumental growth trajectory, Ripple doubled its headcount in Singapore over the past year across key functions such as business development, compliance, finance, legal, and sales – with plans to continue increasing its presence in the world’s fastest growing region,” the press release said.
In November, the central bank granted stablecoin issuers Circle Internet Financial and Paxos approval for MPI licenses to operate in the region. The licenses enabled the firms to offer stablecoin services and other digital payment token products within Singapore.