Binance Asia Services, the Singapore arm of Binance, the cryptocurrency exchange, announced on Wednesday, December 8, 2021 via press release, that it is buying an 18% stake in Hg Exchange (HGX). Hg Exchange is a Singapore-based private securities exchange.
The firm has not revealed how much it cost them to acquire the stake. The deal is still subject to regulatory approvals, and an expected closing timeline is unknown.
Richard Teng, the CEO of Binance Singapore, who used to work at HGX stated that the platform plans to work collaboratively with Hg Exchange to foster the blockchain ecosystem in the region.
According to him in the press release above, “Crypto and traditional financial offerings continue to converge. Through this investment, we seek to work with HGX in enhancing offerings of products and services supported by blockchain technology. In Singapore, we continue to work closely with key government agencies to support the growth of the blockchain ecosystem and development of requisite local talent needed.”
Hg Exchange (HGX) powers cross-border listing and trading of both digital and non-digital capital market products. It was founded in 2019 by prominent institutions such as brokerage firm PhillipCapital, financial service group PrimePartners, and investment firm Fundnel.
HGX is powered by the blockchain platform, Zilliqa. It also has a Recognized Market Operator license from the Singaporean regulator, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).
This move comes at a time while Binance Asia is still awaiting approval from the Monetary Authority of Singapore for a license to provide crypto services in the country. Binance has faced a lot of challenges in getting recognised as a legal financial institution in Singapore.
The crypto exchange might be trying to claim some ground in the country by investing in an already recognised institution. Whatever the case may be, the acquisition is still subject to regulatory requirements and there’s a slight chance that the transaction might be rejected.
