Singapore state-owned megabank DBS Group is planning to develop its cryptocurrency companies to Hong Kong because the Chinese language territory pushes to grow to be a digital asset hub.

DBS Financial institution plans to use for a license to permit it to supply crypto buying and selling companies to Hong Kong prospects, Bloomberg reported on Feb. 13.

“We’re planning to use for a license in Hong Kong in order that the financial institution may promote digital belongings to our Hong Kong prospects,” DBS Financial institution Hong Kong CEO Sebastian Paredes mentioned.

Paredes famous that DBS welcomes new crypto-related insurance policies in Hong Kong, and can be “very delicate” to the dangers related to digital belongings. The financial institution is keen to grow to be one of many first lenders providing crypto in Hong Kong as soon as the rules are absolutely clear and DBS “understands precisely the framework,” he added.

DBS Financial institution made a large transfer into the cryptocurrency business a couple of years in the past, launching its institutional crypto trade in Singapore in late 2020. The corporate has additionally been working to develop its crypto platform to retail buyers and making use of decentralized finance know-how to joint initiatives with Singapore’s central financial institution.

The brand new DBS’ plans to develop to Hong Kong come amid China’s particular administrative area persevering with to reaffirm its pro-crypto stance. In January, Hong Kong’s monetary secretary Paul Chan declared that the Hong Kong authorities is open to collaboration with crypto and fintech startups in 2023. The official additionally mentioned that a variety of business companies expressed willingness to develop operations in Hong Kong or to go public on native exchanges.

As beforehand reported, Hong Kong lawmakers handed laws to arrange a licensing system for digital asset service suppliers in December 2022. The brand new regulatory framework is designed to offer the identical diploma of market recognition to crypto exchanges because the one that’s presently relevant to conventional monetary establishments.

Associated: Hong Kong securities regulator provides crypto personnel for business supervision

Whereas Hong Kong authorities have been opening as much as crypto not too long ago, Singapore has taken a extra stringent strategy to the crypto business within the aftermath of main business failures in 2022. In October, the Financial Authority of Singapore proposed to ban all types of cryptocurrency credit score following the chapter of the Singaporean crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.