The leading virtual assets custody service provider, Hex Trust, has secured a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). This in-principle approval allows the Hong Kong-based digital custodian to operate a Digital Payment token (DPT) in Singapore while legally authorized.
Hex Trust secures license under revised licensing regime
The crypto company has been operating in the state since 2020 and won a regulatory license in September 2021. Initially, Singapore introduced a licensing framework for crypto firms under the Payment Service Act of 2019. However, in April 2024, Singapore updated its licensing regime, requiring crypto firms, including Hex Trust, to comply with the revised regulations.
The updated MPI license allows the crypto platform to deal with DPT alongside custody and over-the-counter trading services. This development highlights the growing interest of institutional companies in compliant digital payment solutions in Singapore, which is emerging with rapid fintech development.
Commenting on the milestone, Alessio Quaglini, CEO and co-founder of Hex Trust Group, praised the platform’s regulatory compliance. He highlighted that the company strengthened its presence by securing regulatory approval under MAS’s “rigorous regulatory standards.”
Managing Director at Hex Trust, Calvin Shen, added,
The in-principle approval of this license is underpinned by Hex Trust’s long-standing commitment to compliance and operational excellence, and to Singapore. We are not only reinforcing our leading role in working closely with regulatory bodies, but also enhancing our capability to safeguard and optimize the digital assets of our institutional clients with regulatory clarity.
Last month, the digital custodian gained an additional Virtual Assets Service Provider (VASP) license from Dubai’s regulatory authority, the Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). This license enables the custody service provider’s Dubai arm to offer crypto staking and virtual asset services, including management, investment, and broker-dealer services.
Hex Trust is one of many firms that received the MPI license. In January, digital asset custody firm BitGo secured a similar license from MAS. Likewise, Ripple Labs won the full license to operate Singapore’s digital payment token services in October 2023.
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