
Manesh Samtani is the Editor at Regulation Asia, where he leads the regional news desk from Hong Kong, directing coverage of critical regulatory developments impacting financial services across APAC. Manesh specialises in analysing how new rules and technologies are reshaping banking, capital markets, and the fight against financial crime, providing finance professionals, compliance leaders, and policymakers with the intelligence they need to navigate risk and understand the impact of regulatory change in the region. manesh@regulationasia.com
Capital / Liquidity
MAS to Launch SGD Liquidity Facility, Enhance USD Facility
03/09/2020
The enhancements will fortify the resilience of Singapore’s banking sector and financial markets, and enable banks to continue to support the needs of businesses and individuals.
Capital / Liquidity
HKMA Extends Principal Payment Holiday Scheme Six Months
03/09/2020
Loan principal payments of eligible corporate customers falling due between November 2020 and April 2021 will be deferred by six months. Trade loans will be deferred by 90 days.
Securities / Derivatives
SFC to Enhance OFC Regime to Level Playing Field
02/09/2020
The SFC will remove investment restrictions, expand custodian eligibility requirements, and introduce a statutory re-domiciliation mechanism.
Crypto / Digital Assets
SGX to Launch Crypto Indices as Part of iEdge Index Suite
01/09/2020
The first batch of new crypto indices will track Bitcoin and Ethereum, and are expected to drive exposures to digital assets in Asia.
Market Infrastructure
Singapore: SOR Fallback Rate to Only be Available Temporarily
01/09/2020
Fallback Rate (SOR), the primary fallback reference rate for SOR derivatives, will be permanently discontinued about three years following the fallback trigger.
AML / KYC
US DOJ Files Civil Forfeiture Complaint to Recover Stolen Crypto
31/08/2020
The two crypto exchange hacks detailed in the complaint are linked to the same group of Chinese actors who laundered over $250mn in stolen cryptocurrency for North Korea in 2018.
Market Infrastructure
Hong Kong: OTC Clear Launches Sponsored Clearing Model
31/08/2020
Foreign banks in Hong Kong that are unable to become full clearing members can use the ‘Sponsored Settlement Member’ model to access central clearing via OTC Clear.
AML / KYC
US Agencies Warn of North Korean ATM Cash-out Threat
30/08/2020
The hacking team uses various techniques to gain access to banks’ SWIFT terminals to enable wire fraud or their payment switch application servers to enable ATM cash-outs.
Market Infrastructure
SFC, CSRC Approve Hong Kong-Mainland ETF Cross-listing
28/08/2020
The new scheme follows the resumption of discussions between the SFC and CSRC in January on setting up an ETF Connect mechanism, after technical issues impeded earlier progress.
Market Infrastructure
DDoS Attacks Force Fourth Day of Market Closure at NZX
27/08/2020
The hacker group said to be responsible has reportedly also carried out attacks against MoneyGram, YesBank India, Worldpay, PayPal, Braintree and Venmo this week.
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