Singapore state-owned megabank DBS Group is planning to expand its cryptocurrency services to Hong Kong as the Chinese territory pushes to become a digital asset hub. DBS Bank plans to apply for a license to allow it to offer crypto trading services to Hong Kong customers, Bloomberg reported on Feb. 13. “We are planning to apply for a license in Hong Kong so that the bank could sell digital assets to our Hong Kong customers,” DBS Bank Hong Kong CEO Sebastian Paredes said. Paredes noted that DBS welcomes new crypto-related policies in Hong Kong, and is also “very sensitive” to …

Welcome to Finance Redefined, your weekly dose of essential decentralized finance (DeFi) insights — a newsletter crafted to bring you significant developments over the last week. The first week of November proved to be the institutionalization of DeFi markets as major international banks and financial institutions executed and completed their first DeFi transaction. The global financial giant JP Morgan completed its first-ever cross-border transaction using DeFi on a public blockchain with the help of the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) Project Guardian. DBS Bank started a trading test of foreign exchange (FX) and government securities using permissioned DeFi liquidity pools. …

DBS Bank, a major financial services group in Asia, is applying decentralized finance (DeFi) for a project backed by Singapore’s central bank. DBS has started a trading test of foreign exchange (FX) and government securities using permissioned, or private, DeFi liquidity pools, the firm announced on Nov. 2. The development is part of Project Guardian, a collaborative cross-industry effort pioneered by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). Conducted on a public blockchain, the trade included the purchase and sale of tokenized Singapore government securities (SGS), the Singapore dollar (SGD), Japanese government bonds and the Japanese yen (JPY). The project has …

A major cryptocurrency selloff in June 2022 has sparked more interest in Bitcoin (BTC) from institutional investors, according to data from one of the biggest banks in Singapore. The total number of trades on DDEx more than doubled in June 2022 as compared to April 2022 amid the growing investor appetite for digital assets like Bitcoin and Ether (ETH). Buy orders on DDEx accounted for 90% of all trades in June as cryptocurrencies traded at notable discounts in mid-2022, DBS said. Compared to April 2022, the amount of Bitcoin purchased on DDEx in June saw a fourfold increase, while the …

DBS Bank, Singapore’s largest bank, is working on expanding its cryptocurrency exchange beyond its current investor base of institutional clients, according to the CEO. DBS Bank CEO Piyush Gupta spoke of the bank’s cryptocurrency business during the Q4 2021 earnings call on Monday, stating that the company will focus on measures to further scale its crypto exchange operations in 2022. During the call, Gupta was asked whether DBS Bank has a roadmap for rolling out digital asset trading to retail investors. While the CEO did not provide a straightforward answer, he still said that DBS Bank did initiate some work …

The Hedera Governing Council has welcomed Singapore's oldest bank, DBS Bank, as its newest member, becoming the first Southeast Asian lender to join the worldwide Hyperledger organization. DBS Bank, a member of the Advisory Council on Fintech, has joined the blockchain council alongside 39 other major technology, corporate and non-profit leaders including Google, IBM, Boeing, Deutsche Telekom, University of London, Dentons and LG Electronics, among others. The Asian lender may acquire value from Hadera's innovative enterprise blockchain platform while also influencing it by providing input on real-world business needs. Council members are allotted three years to serve, extendible for two …

Singapore’s principal financial regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), has officially approved two companies to offer cryptocurrency services in the country. MAS issued licenses to Australian crypto exchange Independent Reserve and DBS Bank’s brokerage arm, DBS Vickers (DBSV), allowing them to provide digital payment token services under the Payment Services Act (PS Act), on Friday. According to an announcement by Independent Reserve, the firm became the first Australian cryptocurrency exchange available to retail and institutional investors in Singapore. Founded in Australia back in 2013, the company started setting up its first overseas operations in Singapore in late 2019, offering …

Singapore’s largest bank, DBS Bank, has expanded its scope of supported cryptocurrency services by scoring another regulatory approval. DBS Bank’s brokerage arm, DBS Vickers (DBSV), has received in-principle approval from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to provide digital payment token services as a payment institution, the company officially announced Thursday. The approval is granted under Singapore’s Payment Services Act, paving the way for DBSV’s payment license. Once licensed, the firm will be able to directly support asset managers and companies trading in digital payment tokens through DBS Bank’s cryptocurrency-enabled exchange, DBS Digital Exchange (DDEx). In conjunction with the MAS …

DBS Private Bank, one of the biggest wealth managers in Asia outside China, has launched a cryptocurrency trust solution amid growing demand for digital assets. After setting up its own crypto exchange in December 2020, the Singaporean banking giant is now expanding its crypto services via its wholly-owned trust company DBS Trustee, The Business Times reports Friday. The new crypto trust solution allows the company’s private banking clients to invest, custody and manage cryptocurrencies. The trust offering supports four cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), XRP, and Bitcoin Cash (BCH), which are the sole digital assets hosted on the DBS …

DBS Bank, Singapore’s largest retail and commercial bank, has announced its first-quarter financial results following the launch of its institutional cryptocurrency exchange in December 2020. DBS chief financial officer Chng Sok Hui said that the bank saw record performance as quarterly net profit surpassed $2 billion for the first time in history, doubling from the previous quarter. DBS’ newly launched crypto platform, DBS Digital Exchange, apparently played a significant role in the bank’s latest milestone, as the platform saw a tenfold increase in daily trading volumes, reaching $30 million to $40 million, DBS CEO Piyush Gupta said. The CEO announced …

Major American investment bank JPMorgan is working with Singapore’s largest bank, DBS, and state investment firm Temasek to launch a new blockchain company focused on global payments and interbank transactions. Dubbed Partior, the new firm will use blockchain technology and digitize commercial bank money to reduce the existing friction in cross-border payments, trade transactions and foreign exchange settlements. Such functionality would enable instant settlement of payments for various types of transactions, helping banks overcome global payment-related challenges in the current financial system, JPMorgan said in a Wednesday announcement. The new platform builds on JPMorgan and Temasek’s past work as part …

After anticipating its plans in October, DBS, Singapore’s largest bank, is establishing a new cryptocurrency exchange division called DBS Digital Exchange. Announced on Thursday, the venture is also backed by SGX, Singapore’s largest derivatives and asset exchange, which owns a 10% stake in the crypto platform. The crypto exchange will only be accessible to institutional and accredited investors, who will be able to trade Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Bitcoin Cash (BCH) and XRP. In addition, DBS Digital Exchange will provide a platform for tokenizing assets such as shares in unlisted companies, bonds and private equity funds. It will be deeply …