DBS Presses Pause on Retail Crypto Trading

DBS bank has announced that it will not expand cryptocurrency trading on its exchange to retail investors in the immediate future. This move is a result of regulatory restrictions in Singapore.

Piyush Gupta, CEO of the DBS bank, stated that regulatory agencies are rightfully concerned about holding back cryptocurrency trading for retail investors.

DBS had initially planned to allow retail investors to trade in crypto. Currently, DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx) only allows institutional and accredited investors to trade cryptocurrencies on its platform. The exchange was launched in December 2020.

DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx) is one of Asia’s first bank-backed digital exchanges. It recorded a whopping US$818 million in trading value in 2021.

“MAS has consistently warned the public that investing in cryptocurrencies is highly risky as investment products and not suitable for the general public,” a representative of DBS said. “Singapore is not alone in holding this view — some jurisdictions have also taken measures in relation to advertising by crypto firms.”

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) had issued guidelines in January to restrict cryptocurrency service providers from marketing or promoting their services to the public. Notably, Singapore has opted for a selective approach in its attitude toward the regulation of digital assets.

Andrew M. Bailey, associate professor at Yale-NUS College in Singapore, had talked about these trends in an interview with Forkast last month. “Singapore’s regulators are increasingly distinguishing between retail activity and institutional activity and they are far more friendly to the second than the first,” he said. Political uncertainty is said to be the cause of this differentiation.  

DBS bank is the largest lender in Singapore. It has always been a front-runner in all matters digital. The multinational bank was the first in the country to launch a digital asset exchange.