BitGo Launches Singapore Services, Eyes Other Crypto-Friendly Regions in Asia

BitGo, the U.S. digital asset infrastructure provider for institutions, has officially launched its services in Singapore, the company announced on Thursday.

Though BitGo has operated in APAC since 2015 and had a presence in Singapore, it did not provide specific Singapore-regulated services. The firm received a Major Payment Institution License (MPI) from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), in August this year. As a result, it is now rolling out a wider suite of products that will put its local offerings on par with those offered in Europe and the U.S.

In addition to its custody and wallet services, BitGo will now offer regulated cold storage for over 1,100 digital assets, 24/7 electronic and voice trading, real-time automated settlements and full-service token management solutions.

Globally, BitGo already has over 1,500 institutional clients in 50 countries and secures approximately 20% of all on-chain bitcoin (BTC) transactions by value. In Singapore, it’s hoping to tap into demand from institutional clients operating in the city for regulated infrastructure services, CEO of BitGo Singapore, Youngro Lee told CoinDesk.

“A lot of institutions in Singapore and Asia haven’t really done much [in crypto]. There have been some traditional institutions that have been working with digital assets, but in a very limited fashion,” Lee said, adding that most of the activity in Singapore is coming from “non-traditional institutions” such as investment funds, venture funds, hedge funds, family offices and high net worth individuals.

“We believe the market will grow larger over time, especially with the U.S. elections and how the world is trending toward digital asset adoption, especially bitcoin. More traditional investors and traditional institutions will want to both offer and engage in digital asset services, and we hope to be one of the partners in Singapore,” he said.

Singapore has emerged as a strong contender for becoming a regional crypto hub in Asia, thanks in part to introducing a regulatory framework for crypto service providers in 2019. That said, despite hundreds of applications, to date only 29 companies are listed on MAS’s website as holding an MPI for digital payment token services. This includes other well-known crypto companies such as Coinbase, Circle, OKX, Paxos and Ripple.

While BitGo’s team in Singapore remains small – less than 20, according to Lee – the company also expects to grow its local team if and when market demand increases over the next few years.

In addition to its Singapore subsidiary, BitGo also has operations in South Korea, where Hana Financial and SK Telecom have 25% and 10% stakes in its local company, respectively.

BitGo is also mulling further expansion into other areas in APAC. “We don’t have any specific plans yet, but obviously we’re looking at the different opportunities and challenges. A lot of it depends on the regulatory environment and how effective and efficient the process will be for us to work with regulators,” Lee said.

“So far, we’ve had a great relationship and great dynamic with MAS, and that’s one of the reasons why we decided to commit to building in Singapore,” he said.