Singapore draws tough lessons from crypto as it aims to ‘play long game’ on AI, MAS official says

Quick Take
- Bloomberg reported that regulators in Singapore want to ensure the AI industry is sustainable, after the authorities “learned a lot of lessons” in the crypto space.


Regulators in Singapore plan to “play a long game” on artificial intelligence development as they draw tough lessons from trouble involving local crypto firms, a central bank official said.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Sopnendu Mohanty, chief fintech officer of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said that the authority wants to “ensure whatever AI we adopt or we promote, it stays for a long period of time.”
“We have learned a lot of lessons in the whole DLT/digital currency space,” Mohanty added. “If you rush yourself very fast, you may see bad actors coming very quickly.”
Singapore is considered a relatively crypto-friendly jurisdiction with many global companies in the crypto and web3 space setting up their bases in the country. However, the city-state has over the past year seen several crises involving crypto players, including the failures of Three Arrows Capital, Vauld and Hodlnaut.
MAS appears to remain committed to regulating crypto firms, though — after recently granting licenses to crypto firms including Coinbase and Circle.
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