Digital Assets

Technological advances and the rapid digitalisation of the economy are unlocking new possibilities for the future of financial services, one of which is Digital Assets.

Overview

As a central bank, MAS is closely monitoring innovations and growth in the digital asset ecosystem and working through the potential opportunities and risks that come with new technologies – to consumers, investors and the financial system at large.

Our vision is to build an innovative and responsible digital asset ecosystem in Singapore. Collaboration is key to growing the digital asset ecosystem, and the only way to find out what works is through experimentation and exploration – “learning by doing”.

Our explorations into new forms of assets will serve to inform policy markets on the regulatory guardrails that are needed to harness the benefits of Digital Assets, while mitigating its risks.

 

What are Digital Assets?

A digital asset is anything of value whose ownership is represented in a digital or computerised form.

This is done through a process called tokenisation – which involves using a software programme to convert ownership rights over an asset into a digital token. Many items can potentially be tokenized:

  • financial assets like cash and bonds
  • real assets like artwork and property
  • intangible items like carbon credits and computing resources

Digital assets are typically deployed on distributed ledgers that record the ownership and transfer of ownership of these assets.

Through tokenisation, high value financial and real economy assets can be fractionalised and exchanged over the internet on a peer-to-peer basis. This could potentially enhance the efficiency, accessibility, and affordability of financial services, increase liquidity in financial markets, and enhance economic inclusion.

Strategy to Develop Digital Asset Ecosystem

What's New