Table of Contents
Crypto exchange Coinbase has partnered with Standard Chartered Bank to offer free bank transfers for customers in Singapore.
Users will be able to transfer Singapore dollars to and from the platform through any local bank in the country for free.
In a statement, Coinbase said it is introducing Singpass for familiar, secure and easier sign-ins for Singaporeans. Standard Chartered will power enable to on and off ramping of customers' funds.
The deal comes as crypto firms look to traditional banks to help with the off ramping process whilst scrutiny falls on the sector amid falling institutions over the past week.
Read more: Asia the Likely Winner as US Banks Collapse
“For banking integration in particular, definitely I’d say that the backdrop is sort of a little interesting and in contrast,” Hassan Ahmed, country director for Coinbase Singapore, said in an interview.
Coinbase and Standard Chartered were already in discussions prior to the collapse of Silvergate, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
The recent failure of these crypto related banks exposed the vulnerability of the industry and has led to concerns about the crypto industry being cut off from the regulated US banking system, as these banks were some of the largest digital asset banks in the country.
Related: One More Setback for Crypto as Signature Bank Closes
The market initially responded negatively, with the largest cryptocurrency by market value plunging below $20,000 as customers withdrew their money en masse before the banks' failure.
However, as US regulators took steps to quell fears and prevent a fallout from recent bank failures, markets have turned green. Over the past five days, Bitcoin is up more than 22.35%, reaching as high as $26,000 on Tuesday.
Coinbase revealed it has a corporate cash balance of $240 million with Signature Bank, but expects to fully recover the funds. The platform then temporarily suspended USDC conversions following USDC issuer Circle’s disclosure of $3.3 billion in exposure to SVB. USDC’s total backing is around $40 billion.
Coinbase’s stock price is up 5.88% at the time of writing.
The world of Web3 can be quite a whirlwind. Whether it’s crypto news in Singapore, South East Asia or even across the globe, we understand how busy the industry is keeping you, so we kindly send out three newsletters each week:
- BlockBeat for a wrap-up of the week’s digital assets news
- Blockhead Brief for weekend happenings as well as what to look forward to in the week ahead
- Business Bulletin for macroeconomic updates and industry developments.
To avoid FOMO and access member-only features, click here to subscribe for FREE.
