Despite the approval of 11 Bitcoin spot ETFs by US regulators last week, sparking a frenzy of investment in Bitcoin spot ETFs, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) stated on the 17th that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin are not qualified assets for ETFs, and therefore, such financial products are not allowed to be listed in Singapore or marketed to retail investors.
According to a report by The Straits Times, the MAS explained that retail investors in Singapore can participate in Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) regulated under the Securities and Futures Act. This includes ETFs, but the types of assets they can invest in are limited. Currently, Bitcoin and other digital payment tokens (DPTs) are not qualified assets for retail CIS.
However, capital market intermediaries licensed by the MAS can still offer overseas market-related investments, ensuring full risk disclosure and appropriate customer suitability assessments. This means that retail investors can still trade Bitcoin spot ETFs listed overseas through local brokerages.
A spokesperson from the MAS reminded that retail investors refer to individual investors who are not qualified or institutional investors. According to the Securities and Futures Act in Singapore, qualified investors are those with financial assets exceeding SGD 1 million, income of at least SGD 300,000 in the past 12 months, or personal net assets exceeding SGD 2 million, with the value of the individual’s primary residence (excluding any secured loan) contributing a maximum of SGD 1 million.
The Singapore Exchange stated that although Bitcoin spot ETFs have not been approved for listing in Singapore, they are monitoring the development of the cryptocurrency industry.
In Korea, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) banned domestic securities firms from acting as agents for overseas listed Bitcoin spot ETFs last week, leading major Korean securities firms such as Samsung Securities to halt trading. Korean securities firms are concerned that Bitcoin futures ETFs may also be banned, but the FSC has stated that overseas Bitcoin futures ETFs will continue to trade.
As for Taiwan, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) stated last week that according to Article 37 of the Investment Trust and Investment Company Act, the constituents of an ETF’s tracking index must be “securities,” such as stocks, bonds, or other approved securities. However, Bitcoin is not an approved security, and under current regulations, investment trusts cannot issue ETFs that track Bitcoin as an investment target.
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Can Taiwan’s financial industry issue Bitcoin ETFs? FSC shakes its head: BTC is not a security!
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