Rise of Singapore as a leading Commonwealth Crypto Finance Hub | 21st July 2022 Webinar Recording

Mr Chris Holland; Co-Founder and Partner, Holland and Marie

With

Julia Charlton; Chairman, Commonwealth Chamber of Commerce

Chris Holland is a New York qualified lawyer and received his law degree from Duke University and his Bachelor’s degree from The University of Virginia. Before working in Holland & Marie, Chris worked as Chief Operating Officer & General Counsel at a Southeast Asia-focused, boutique investment bank. Chris has considerable experience managing communications with regulators and implementing cross-jurisdictional policies and procedures. Prior to that role, Chris worked in the Singapore, Hong Kong and New York offices of Clifford Chance where he was Counsel in the Capital Markets Department.

In this webinar Chris presents an informative overview of Singapore’s infrastructural and regulatory merits and enabling business ecosystem for game changing innovations that make the jurisdiction so attractive for the incubation and gradual expansion of cryptocurrency amongst businesses and the general public. Based on this contextual understanding, he goes on to explain how the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) identified  four key risks associated with the rise of cryptocurrency use within the nation, namely the loss of customer monies, money laundering and terrororist financing risks, fragmentation across payment solutions and technology risks. Based on these risks, Chris explains the rationale of the MAS behind Singapore’s Payment Services Act describing in detail the terms and conditions of the evolving legislation as well as what it means for all businesses and investors involved. Providing a clear, concise and impressively simply explanation of the intricate technicalities of the MAS’ licensing processes and logic behind the banning of crypto advertising to the general public, Chris maps out the regulatory timeline and market developments whilst sharing his own understanding of how these developments will evolve over the next few years.

In discussion with the Chamber, Chris gave riveting insights into the current situation on the ground in Singapore and how companies and investors have been adapting to and working with the onslaught of MAS regulations. Getting candid with the Commonwealth Chamber, Chris shares his divided views on the effectiveness of MAS policies, especially regarding the restriction of advertising and extremely rigorous vetting processes for those seeking licenses. However, ultimately, Chris provides solid examples of comparative studies of other jurisdictions and provides convincing arguments to support the argument that Singapore’s extensive regulations and cautious approach has been a wise strategy that has paid off immensely and is one of the many reasons why Singapore remains at the fore of cryptocurrency regulations, not just within the Commonwealth but across the globe.