Singapore central bank head hopes cryptocurrency tech will survive 'crash'

The head of Singapore’s central bank said on Monday he hoped the technologies underpinning cryptocurrencies such as blockchain would not be undermined by an eventual crash in the digital money. 

The city-state has been positioning itself as a hub for fintech - or financial technology - but has urged “extreme caution” about buying cryptocurrencies.

“I do hope when the fever has gone away, when the crash has happened, it will not undermine the much deeper, and more meaningful technology associated with digital currencies and blockchain,” said Ravi Menon, the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS),

Menon added that he would not rule out the possibility of the MAS issuing a cryptocurrency directly to the public but that he was not sure it was a good idea.

1MDB scandal: Singapore issues more financial bans

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Singapore's central bank said on Tuesday (Dec 19) it has issued more financial bans in its 1MDB investigation.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said it issued a lifetime prohibition order against former BSI banker Yeo Jiawei and a three-year prohibition order against NRA Capital CEO Kevin Scully. Both orders took effect on Monday.

MAS had earlier this year served notices of intention to issue prohibitions against the two men.
Yeo, a former wealth manager of Swiss bank BSI, was investigated by the Commercial Affairs Department on 1MDB-related matters and convicted on a number of charges, including money laundering, cheating and tampering with witnesses during the investigation.

He was sentenced to four-and-a-half years' jail in July.

MAS said the prohibition order will prohibit Yeo from providing any capital markets and financial advisory services.

He will also not be able to take part in the also not be able to take part in the management of, acting as a director of, or becoming a substantial shareholder of any capital markets and financial advisory services firm in Singapore, it added.

Mr Scully was the chief executive officer of NRA Capital, a licensed financial adviser. The company had been appointed to perform the valuation of PetroSaudi Oil Services.

MAS said it found that Mr Scully had failed to ensure NRA’s valuation of PetroSaudi Oil Services was carried out with sufficient care, judgment and objectivity.

The authority said it decided to proceed with issuing the prohibition order against Mr Scully after considering his written representations and the relevant facts.

The prohibition order will prohibit Mr Scully from providing any financial advisory services, and taking part in the management of, acting as a director of, or becoming a substantial shareholder of any financial advisory services firm in Singapore, MAS said.

Including these latest actions, MAS has now issued prohibition orders against eight people involved in 1MDB-related breaches.

Once a pet project of Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak, who chaired its advisory board, 1MDB is the subject of money-laundering investigations in at least six countries including Switzerland, Singapore and the United States.

Singapore's central bank had said in May that it had ended its two-year review of banks with 1MDB-linked transactions.