Singapore regulator calls for more feedback on payments law
Wants to expand the scope of regulated activities to include virtual currency services
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has launched a second consultation on its proposed regulatory framework, known as the Payment Services Bill.
According to MAS, the Bill will streamline the regulation of services under a single legislation, expand the scope of regulated activities to include virtual currency services and “calibrate regulation according to the risks posed by these activities”.
MAS managing director, Ravi Menon, says it wants to “encourage wider adoption of secure e-payment solutions”.
When the new Bill is enacted, payment firms will only need to hold one licence under a single regulatory framework to conduct any or all of the specified activities.
MAS points out that activities that face customers or merchants, process funds or acquire transactions, and pose relevant regulatory concerns will need to be licensed.
It adds that the Bill will differentiate requirements rather than apply a uniform set of regulations on all payment service providers.
The public consultation will run from 21 November 2017 to 8 January 2018. A copy of the paper is available on the MAS website here.
Codes and cash
As usual, MAS has been very active.
The Singapore Payments Council, set up by MAS, endorsed the specification for a common Singapore Quick Response Code (SG QR) that can accept electronic payments by both domestic and international schemes, e-wallets and banks.
MAS revealed that $2 billion of capital is now available for start-ups through the Singapore Investor Summit.
Accenture, MAS and the Association of Banks in Singapore (ABS) published a report on the outcome of Phase 2 of Project Ubin. This 13-week project is to develop software prototypes for improved payments on blockchain.
In terms of legal matters, back in July, MAS called for a second reading of “The Monetary Authority of Singapore (Amendment) Bill 2017″ because it says it needs to update its laws and regulations that deal with resolution, “so as to ensure effective handling of a financial institution (FI) that gets into serious trouble, and especially to avoid contagion or a loss of confidence in the system”.
