The Monetary Authority of Singapore noted that it was aware of the regulatory scrutiny that Binance was facing elsewhere and that it was following up as required with a local unit.

MAS said it was following up with Binance Asia Services, a local entity, as part of standard processes to review applications for a license to provide digital payment token services in the city-state. 

Binance Asia Services Pte. is currently operating under a grace period while MAS reviews its application alongside other companies.

«We are aware of the actions taken by other regulatory authorities against Binance and will follow up as appropriate,» MAS said, adding that Binance can continue to operate in the meantime.

Binance Asia Services

Binance Asia Services is a separate legal entity and does not offer any products or services via the Binance.com website or Binance Markets Ltd., according to a statement from the firm.

«It is important to note that we take a collaborative approach in working with regulators and we take our compliance obligations very seriously,» according to a «Bloomberg» report citing Binance’s statement. «We are actively keeping abreast of changing policies, rules and laws in this new space.»

Binance Asia Services is backed by Vertex Ventures Holdings and focuses on growing Singapore's blockchain ecosystem and servicing its users.

Binance Block

MAS’ statement follows recent moves by foreign watchdogs against Binance including U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority which banned its British arm from conducting any regulatory activity without explaining why it took such action.

Separately, Japan's regulator said last week that Binance was operating illegally in the country, Germany’s regulators warned of possible fines in April over stock-linked token offerings while the U.S. Justice Department and Internal Revenue Service has reportedly launched a probe of the firm.

Globally, Binance is a crypto giant with gargantuan trading volumes that reached $662 billion in June – a ten-fold surge compared to July 2020 – according to data from CryptoCompare.