Stablecoin rules
Latest change ·
First version, covering India, Singapore and Hong Kong.
Sources: hkma.gov.hk, mas.gov.sg, rbi.org.in
Who may issue a stablecoin in India, Singapore and Hong Kong, under what licence, and what is changing
As of 30 September 2026, Hong Kong is the only one of the three markets with a stablecoin law in force and licensed issuers: the Stablecoins Ordinance took effect on 1 August 2025 and the first two licences followed in April 2026. Singapore settled its policy in August 2023 and is now consulting on the Payment Services Act amendments that would put it into law. India has no stablecoin framework, and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) argues against private stablecoins and for its own central bank digital currency (CBDC).
Side by side
| India | Singapore | Hong Kong | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Law | None | Payment Services Act amendments proposed | Stablecoins Ordinance (Cap. 656), in force |
| Regulator | None designated | MAS | HKMA |
| Who needs a licence | No licence exists | Issuers of single-currency stablecoins in Singapore that want the “MAS-regulated” label | Anyone issuing a fiat-referenced stablecoin in Hong Kong, or a Hong Kong dollar one anywhere |
| Licensed issuers | None | None until the law passes | Anchorpoint Financial and HSBC |
| Interest to holders | Not applicable | Ban proposed | Not allowed |
| Unlicensed stablecoins | Treated as virtual digital assets for tax and AML | Treated as digital payment tokens; powers over systemic ones proposed | Full crypto rules for intermediaries; not offered to retail |
By market
India
India has no law or regulation for stablecoin issuers. Stablecoins fall within virtual digital assets, so exchanges that trade them register with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU-IND) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act and follow its AML guidelines. Gains are taxed at 30% with 1% tax deducted at source on transfers, which the Finance Bill, 2026 left unchanged.
The RBI’s position is against private stablecoins. In a December 2025 speech, Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar argued that stablecoins serve no purpose that fiat money cannot serve better, and set out risks to monetary stability, bank intermediation and capital flow management. The RBI’s annual report for 2025-26 discusses CBDC as the settlement asset for tokenised transactions and does not discuss stablecoins as an option.
Singapore
The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) finalised its stablecoin framework in August 2023. It covers single-currency stablecoins issued in Singapore and pegged to the Singapore dollar or a G10 currency, and requires full reserves in low-risk assets, redemption at par within five business days, capital, and a white paper. Only issuers that meet it may call their tokens “MAS-regulated stablecoins”.
On 1 September 2026 MAS published draft amendments to the Payment Services Act that would create a stablecoin issuance licence. The draft adds a ban on paying interest to holders, a requirement to be able to trace, freeze and burn tokens used for illicit activity, joint issuance with foreign issuers, recognition of some foreign-regulated stablecoins, and powers to designate a stablecoin as systemic whether or not it is issued in Singapore. Stablecoins outside the framework would be treated as ordinary digital payment tokens. Comments close on 16 October 2026.
Hong Kong
The Stablecoins Ordinance requires a licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) to issue a fiat-referenced stablecoin in Hong Kong, or to issue one referenced to the Hong Kong dollar in or outside Hong Kong. Only licensed issuers’ stablecoins may be offered to retail investors. The regime took effect on 1 August 2025. The HKMA’s supervisory guideline requires full backing at all times (para 2.2), bars interest or interest-like incentives (para 2.6), and sets minimum paid-up capital of HK$25 million (para 5.1).
The HKMA granted the first two licences on 10 April 2026, to Anchorpoint Financial and HSBC. Anchorpoint’s Hong Kong dollar stablecoin, HKDAP, opened to institutional users through authorised distributors in August 2026.
Other rules give licensed stablecoins lighter treatment. SFC and HKMA circulars of 27 May 2026 exempt them from the token liquidity tests, the crypto knowledge test for stablecoin-only clients and client exposure limits. Funds holding them no longer count as crypto funds. Stablecoins from unlicensed issuers stay under the full crypto rules.
For Ethereum
HKDAP is issued on Ethereum mainnet, with access limited to whitelisted wallets during its first phase. Singapore’s draft requires licensed issuers to be able to trace, freeze and burn tokens on-chain (para 3.22 of the consultation paper). The large fiat-backed stablecoin contracts on Ethereum already carry freeze functions, so this changes little in practice. MAS also lists restrictions on unhosted wallets among measures other jurisdictions have considered, and says it will assess whether more is needed (para 3.23). If adopted, that would limit MAS-regulated stablecoins in self-custody and in DeFi.
Open questions
- Whether India’s government publishes a position on stablecoins that differs from the RBI’s. A Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance study of virtual digital assets was under way in 2026.
- Which chains Hong Kong’s next licensees choose, and whether any licence goes to an issuer without a bank shareholder.
- Whether Singapore adds limits on transfers to self-hosted wallets for MAS-regulated stablecoins.
- Whether Singapore’s recognition route for foreign-regulated stablecoins will cover Hong Kong’s licensed ones.
Next milestones
- 16 October 2026: comments close on Singapore’s Payment Services Act amendments.
- End of 2026: Anchorpoint’s target for retail access to HKDAP.
- Later: MAS’s Notice on trace, freeze and burn capabilities, and the amending bill.