In this roundup: Reassurances for the business community in Singapore; MAS and ABS announce establishment of Singapore Payments Network (SPaN); regulation of virtual assets in Hong Kong; Bupa fined in Australia – and more..
Singapore
In an important development, the Singapore Monetary Authority (MAS) provided important clarification and guidance on its proposed regulatory framework for Digital Token Service Providers (DTSPs).
One of the key changes applies to DTSPs serving customers solely outside Singapore, who will now need to have a license to do so if they wish to operate from within Singapore.
MAS has said it has set the bar for getting a license high because: “The money laundering risks are higher in such business models and if their substantive regulated activity is outside of Singapore, MAS is unable to effectively supervise such persons.”
DTSPs serving customers in Singapore, and providers of other tokens, will not be affected as they are already regulated, MAS has said.
MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) also announced the establishment of the Singapore Payments Network (SPaN).
The new entity “will administer and govern Singapore’s national payment schemes,” MAS said.
The new body will also, “consolidate the administration and governance of Singapore’s national payment schemes to position them for the next stage of growth, and to collaborate with MAS on the development of Singapore’s national payments strategy.”
Chee Hong Tat, Minister for National Development, and Deputy Chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), delivered a speech at the Nomura Investment Forum Asia on June 4, 2025.
He assured the business community that authorities were aware of their concerns regarding the current uncertainty and volatility in the global business environment.
Tat added that the 90-day pause in tariffs enforcement by the current US administration may provide a temporary reprieve, but accepted that the future was still uncertain.
“We also don’t know whether there will be new rules and changes later. So the long and short of it is, I think we can all agree, it is now a much more uncertain, turbulent and volatile world,” Tat added.
He assured business leaders that, despite trade issues with the US, there are other opportunities in Asia and Europe that can be explored. He also insisted that Singapore’s position as one of the best and strongest financial services markets in Asia puts it in a stronger position to attract new opportunities.
MAS and the Singapore Police Force (SPF) have said that the websites of two overseas trading platforms, Octa and XM, “have been determined to be in breach of the Securities and Futures Act 2001 (SFA)” and will therefore be blocked.
According to MAS: “The SPF have received information that the services offered by Octa and XM included trading in foreign exchange on a leveraged basis, commodities, indices, and equities.”
Authorities have said the two platforms “offered and marketed their services to customers in Singapore without licenses, which is in breach of the SFA.”
And in a major enforcement action last month, five Major Payment Institutions (MPIs) were fined a total of S$960,000 ($753,038.40) “for breaches of MAS’ Anti-Money-Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) requirements.”
“The MPIs were found to have inadequate AML/CFT controls in place, resulting in multiple breaches of AML/CFT requirements,” the regulator said.
The five entities include Remsea Pte Ltd (Remsea), Arcade Plaza Traders Pte Ltd (APT), J-Dee Remittance Services Pte Ltd (J-Dee), Mobile Community Tech Pte Ltd (MCT), and OxPay SG Pte Ltd (OxPay).
Hong Kong
The Hong Kong Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB) and the territory’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) launched a joint consultation to introduce regulatory regimes for virtual assets (VA) dealing and custodian service providers.
“The proposals will empower the SFC to license and supervise VA dealers and custodians, as well as enforce relevant regulations,” the SFC added.
“The SFC will also be responsible for setting the expected standards for these two important types of service providers to ensure robust investor protection and market integrity based on the ‘same business, same risks, same rules’ principle,” the regulator has said.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the People’s Bank of China (PBoC) jointly announced “cooperation between the China National Clearing Center (CNCC) and the Hong Kong Interbank Clearing Limited (HKICL) in linking the faster payment systems in the Mainland and Hong Kong.”
The HKMA said the joint venture, called Payment Connect, aims to “deepen financial cooperation between the Mainland and Hong Kong, and to meet the demand of residents in both places for secure, efficient and convenient cross-boundary remittance service. Payment Connect supports the participating institutions of the faster payment systems in both places to provide convenient remittance services in Renminbi and Hong Kong dollar for residents in both places under the current account.”
The HKMA and The Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB) also jointly announced the launch of the Smart Seniors Anti-Scam Ambassador Programme.
The new venture “aims to enhance the anti-scam awareness of the elderly” and includes “visits to elderly centres across all 18 districts in Hong Kong,” the HKMA said.
Arthur Yuen, Deputy Chief Executive of the HKMA, said: “The HKMA attaches great importance to scam prevention work for the elderly. Through the Smart Seniors Anti-Scam Ambassador Programme, we hope to reach out to the community and convey anti-scam messages to more seniors through the elderly ambassadors.”
Also, the HKMA and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) signed a partnership agreement which aims to “support the development of innovative technologies and business models for green and technology-enabled infrastructure in Asia’s emerging economies.”
“Under the partnership, the HKMA and the AIIB will collaborate closely to invest in a portfolio of VC funds that prioritize investments across emerging markets in Asia,” the regulator said.
South Korea
Authorities in Seoul have announced that the 2025 Korea Fintech Week will be held for three days from 26 to 28 November at aT Center in Seoul.
A press release by the South Korean Financial Services Commission (FSC) says: “The Korea Fintech Week is the largest fintech exhibition event organized by Korea, offering a venue for sharing the latest fintech innovation trends on artificial intelligence (AI) and so on and providing chances to promote and attract investment.”
The seventh annual global fintech expo this year will be held under the theme of “Fintech x AI: The Personalization of Finance,” the press release adds.
Australia
And finally, the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has fined British health insurer Bupa A$35m (US$23m) for “misleading and deceptive” practices between May 2018 and August 2023, according to a press release by the regulator.
Bupa has been accused of “breaches of the Australian Consumer Law in relation to members’ entitlements to private health insurance benefits for certain claims, affecting thousands of consumers over a period of more than five years,” the press release adds.
“Bupa has admitted to engaging in misleading or deceptive conduct and making false or misleading representations by advising members they were not entitled to private health insurance benefits for their entire claim, when in fact this was not the case.”
Bupa has agreed the fine with the regulator, but a final penalty will be set by the court.
Separately, the FT has reported that other companies such as Qantas, HSBC and Australian supermarket giants have also recently faced the wrath of the country’s regulators for “poor governance and consumer protection.”
