What happened
The Monetary Authority of Singapore published a consultation paper on Monday proposing to embed its stablecoin regulatory framework directly into the Payment Services Act 2019, per a filing on the regulator's website. The framework has existed as a set of guidelines since August 2023, when MAS finalized rules for single-currency stablecoins pegged to the Singapore dollar or any G10 currency. Those guidelines were binding in practice but sat outside the primary payments statute, leaving enforcement in a grey zone.
The proposal moves the regime into law and adds three new elements. Foreign-issued stablecoins that circulate in Singapore would fall under the Act for the first time, closing what MAS staff have privately called a jurisdictional gap. Issuers would be permitted to pay interest or yield on stablecoin balances, subject to disclosure and reserve rules. And every licensed issuer would need to submit a wind-down plan detailing how holders get redeemed if the company fails, according to the consultation text reported by Crypto.News.
The consultation window runs several weeks, with feedback due before MAS drafts the amending bill for parliament.
Why it matters
Singapore was one of the first major jurisdictions to publish detailed stablecoin rules in 2023, but the framework's status as guidance rather than statute limited its reach. Codifying it does two things at once. It gives MAS clearer enforcement teeth, and it sends a signal to issuers weighing where to domicile that Singapore is serious about a long-term regime, not a pilot.
The foreign-issuer clause is the piece that moves markets. Tether's USDT and Circle's USDC circulate freely in Singapore today without either issuer holding a local license. Under the proposed rules, distribution to Singapore users would trigger a licensing obligation on the issuer or its local intermediary. That mirrors the approach the EU took with MiCA, which pushed both companies to restructure their European operations in 2024.