Despite the approval of 11 Bitcoin spot ETFs for listing 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 such as Bitcoin are not qualified assets for ETFs and therefore such financial products are not allowed to be listed in Singapore or targeted at retail investors.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of the United States officially approved the listing of 11 Bitcoin spot ETFs last week, attracting high market attention. The total daily trading volume in the first three days before listing approached $10 billion. However, according to reports by Singapore’s Lianhe Zaobao, the MAS does not allow such financial products to be listed in Singapore or targeted at retail investors.
The MAS explained that collective investment schemes (CIS) that Singaporean retail investors can participate in are regulated by the Securities and Futures Act and cover ETFs. The types of assets they can invest in are limited, and currently Bitcoin and other digital payment tokens (DPT) are not qualified assets for retail CIS.
However, capital market intermediaries licensed by the MAS can still provide investments related to overseas markets, ensuring sufficient 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 for the MAS reminded that retail investors refer to individual investors other than qualified investors or institutional investors. According to Singapore’s Securities and Futures Act, qualified investors refer to 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. The value of the individual’s primary residence (excluding any mortgage) can only contribute up to SGD 1 million.
The Singapore Exchange stated that although Bitcoin spot ETFs have not been approved for listing in Singapore, the exchange is monitoring the development of the cryptocurrency industry.
South Korea and Taiwan block Bitcoin spot ETFs
Previously, the Financial Services Commission (FSC) of South Korea banned domestic brokerages from acting as agents for overseas-listed Bitcoin spot ETFs last week, leading to major South Korean brokerages such as Samsung Securities halting trading. South Korean brokerages are concerned that futures ETFs may also be prohibited, but the FSC has stated that overseas Bitcoin futures ETFs will be allowed to continue trading.
As for Taiwan, the Financial Supervisory Commission (FSC) stated last week that according to Article 37 of the Regulations Governing Securities Investment Trust Funds, the constituents of ETFs must be “securities” such as stocks, bonds, or other approved securities. However, Bitcoin is not an approved security, and under existing regulations, investment trusts cannot issue ETFs that track Bitcoin as an investment target.
Further reading:
Can Taiwan’s financial industry issue Bitcoin ETFs? FSC shakes its head: BTC is not a security!
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