Coinbase Enters Singapore, EU lawmakers Pass Landmark Bill Regulating Crypto Assets

Coinbase, the largest cryptocurrency exchange in the United States, has claimed that the central bank of Singapore has given its approval to provide payment services in the city-state, Reuters reported.

Individuals and institutions can now utilise digital payment token services due to the in-principle approval the central bank began granting to cryptocurrency companies last year. The firms are also subject to the central bank’s regulation under the Payment Services Act, the report said.

Says Hassan Ahmed, Coinbase’s regional director for Southeast Asia: “We see Singapore as a strategic market and a global hub for Web 3.0 innovation.”

EU Lawmakers Pass Landmark Bill Regulating Crypto Assets

European Union legislators on Monday approved a new bill on regulating crypto assets, named the Markets in Crypto Assets Regulation (MiCA). This major law aims to impose regulations on the use of digital assets within the bloc, Decrypt. co reported.

According to the MiCA Bill, people who are creating cryptocurrency, are required to make their project details available via a “crypto-asset white paper”.

Additionally, it mandates that Stablecoin businesses meet capital criteria. If their tokens are not pegged to the Euro or another currency accepted by EU member states, there will be a limit to the number of tokens they can issue.

OECD Announces New Global Tax Reporting Framework For Crypto Assets

The Crypto-Asset Reporting Methodology (CARF), a new tax reporting framework established by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), was announced in a press release on Monday.

The framework, which was approved in August, ensures “the collection and automatic exchange of information on transactions for relevant crypto,” the report noted.

The definition of crypto assets “includes assets that can be held and transferred in a decentralised manner, without the intervention of traditional financial intermediaries, including Stablecoins, derivatives issued in the form of a crypto-assets, and certain non-fungible tokens,” the report added.

CARF was created in light of the crypto industry’s rapid expansion. The industry’s market value last year increased from $715 billion in January to almost $3 trillion before falling this year. Additionally, these modifications are consistent with the recent changes made to the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF’s) international anti-money laundering guidelines.