Bsquared loses Singapore crypto license following regulatory violations
The regulatory authority discovered significant shortcomings in Bsquared's approach to managing risks and handling conflicts of interest, while also determining that the company had submitted false or misleading statements to officials on numerous occasions.
The central banking authority of Singapore has withdrawn the cryptocurrency payment license belonging to Bsquared Technology Pte. Ltd., terminating the company's authorization to offer digital payment token services following the discovery of multiple regulatory violations.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) disclosed in a statement released on Wednesday that it had canceled Bsquared's Major Payment Institution Licence following an inspection conducted at the company's premises, which revealed deficiencies in how the firm managed risks and addressed conflicts of interest, alongside non-compliance with the authority's requirements for outsourcing arrangements.
According to MAS, Bsquared submitted information that was either false or misleading on numerous occasions, spanning from the time it filed its original license application all the way through the inspection process.
The firm, which also operates under the name BSQ, secured its license just 16 months prior after gaining authorization to provide digital payment token services in accordance with Singapore's Payment Services Act 2019.
MAS orders Bsquared to submit a closure certificate
The firm must provide a closure certificate issued by its auditors that verifies all funds belonging to customers have been properly returned to their rightful owners. According to statements Bsquared made to MAS, the company was not holding any customer assets at the time.
"MAS takes a serious view of the breaches committed by BSQ, and is reviewing the responsibilities of key officers of BSQ," the central bank added.
To date, MAS has issued 37 licenses for digital payment token services, with license revocations being relatively rare occurrences. In the previous year, MAS turned down a license application submitted by AmazingTech, which operates Tokenize Xchange, following which the Commercial Affairs Department initiated an investigation into the business.
Singapore pushes deeper into digital asset infrastructure
The nation of Singapore has established itself as a prominent cryptocurrency center in Asia, hosting regional headquarters for Coinbase and Ripple, in addition to serving as the worldwide headquarters for Crypto.com.
The city-state continues to strengthen its standing as a premier destination for bridging conventional finance with digital asset technologies.
In the previous month, Singapore Gulf Bank introduced a new service that permits institutional customers to create and redeem stablecoins directly through their banking accounts using the Solana blockchain, facilitating round-the-clock settlement capabilities between traditional fiat currencies and digital assets.