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Fintech licenses
in Singapore
Sino Fintech can assist you in obtaining an appropriate license for your business to operate in Singapore fast and economically.

This section discusses relevant information on different types of licenses in Singapore.
- Article
Fintech licenses in Singapore
There are three types of licenses that payment service providers can hold in Singapore:

  • SPI (Standard Payment Institution) license
  • MPI (Major Payment Institution) license
  • Money-Changing license

How to choose the correct license?

If you expect the volume of transactions to be more than the numbers mentioned above, you should obtain an MPI license.

If you plan to provide only money-changing services, you should apply for a money-changing license instead.

A company should apply for the SPI license (not the MPI license) if the planned volume of transactions does not exceed the following:
  • For any payment service (excluding e-money account issuance and money-changing services), the monthly transaction limit is S$3 million.
  • If you use two or more payment services (excluding e-money account issuance and money-changing services), the monthly transaction limit is S$6 million.
  • The outstanding daily e-money limit is S$5 million.

Scope of license

Standard/ Major Payment institutions can also provide money-changing services alongside those from the list above.

Money-changing license holders can provide only money-changing services.

Standard/ Major Payment institutions are entitled to provide the following services:
  • an account issuance service;
  • a domestic money transfer service;
  • a cross-border money transfer service;
  • a merchant acquisition service;
  • an e-money issuance service;
  • a DPT (digital payment token) service.

Step 1. Preparing your company to meet the criteria of eligibility.

Here is a step-by-step guide to obtaining SPI (Standard Payment Institution) license in Singapore:

  • The applicant must be a foreign corporation registered in Singapore or a Singapore-incorporated firm (the Sino Fintech team offers incorporation services);
  • The applicant must have an established location of a business or registered office (Sino Fintech provides local office space for rent and recruitment services);
  • The applicant must have a minimum base capital of S$100,000;
  • The applicant's board of directors must include at least 1 executive who is a Singaporean citizen or permanent resident, at least 1 non-executive director who is a Singaporean citizen or permanent resident, and at least 1 executive who is a holder of a Singapore Employment Pass (Sino Fintech can help you find a local director)


Licenses in Singapore and crypto-related activities

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Step 2. Drafting necessary documents.

The Sino Fintech team will review your business model and adjust your documents in accordance with the MAS requirements. If you need professional help to draft your documents, our team can prepare the necessary documents for your business from scratch.
It is required to provide:
  • Business plan;
  • Financial projections;
  • Company structure, board of directors and essential management personnel information, risk management framework;
  • Compliance framework, including Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) policies and procedures.


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Step 3. Paying the application fee.

The application fees are, in summary:
  • For a money-changing license, S$500;
  • For an SPI, S$1,000 or the sum of the amounts in the table below for the payment services applied for, whichever is higher.
  • For an MPI, S$1,500 or the sum of the amounts in the table below for the payment services applied for, whichever is higher.


Once the application is submitted, MAS will review and evaluate the application before granting the license. The time required for the evaluation process varies depending on the business model's complexity and the application's completeness. In general, it is 9 – 12 months.


After the license is granted, the company information will be published on the Financial Institutions Directory website.

Licensees must comply with all applicable requirements under the Payment Services Act 2019 and other relevant legislation. The audit for payment institutions in Singapore is conducted regularly. Licensees are required to establish systems, policies, and processes to guarantee that they carry out their continuing requirements, particularly in the following crucial areas:
  • AML and CFT Requirements;
  • Periodic Returns;
  • Cyber Hygiene;
  • Business Conduct;
  • Disclosures and Communications;
  • Annual Audit Requirements.
Sino Fintech professional team provides ongoing legal support and consulting for SPI/ MPI license holders.

Standard and major payment institutions must pay an annual license fee, and the applicable fees depend on the payment services it is licensed to conduct. The total annual fee can be at least S $ 5,000 for SPIs and cannot be at least S $ 10,000 for MPIs.


Step 4. MAS evaluates the application and may ask for clarifications and detailed information.

Step 5. Grant of license and further compliance.

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MAS/MPI license allows providing DPT (digital payment token) services. Until the end of 2022, MAS granted licenses to eleven payment institutions (9 MPIs and 2 SPIs) operating with cryptocurrencies, including Revolut, FOMOPay, Paxos, etc. Additionally, seven crypto companies have received in-principle approval from MAS and are awaiting a final decision.

The money-Changing license allows exchanging fiat currencies for cryptocurrencies and vice versa.