The Gemini cryptocurrency exchange is expanding further into Asia with the appointment of former Leonteq Asia CEO Jeremy Ng as Managing Director of Asia Pacific region.
The move sets the Winklevoss twins’ exchange up to apply for a license under Singapore’s 2019 Payment Services Act, which requires at least one director to be a Singapore citizen or permanent resident.
Ng will oversee the overall strategy and build a team in the region, reporting directly to Gemini’s President Cameron Winklevoss. With more than 20 years in financial services, Ng has worked for leading global banks including Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank and Morgan Stanley.
Winklevoss said that focus on Southeast Asia had gone hand in hand with regulatory developments in Singapore:
“The Monetary Authority of Singapore has developed thoughtful regulation that is paving the way for further adoption and innovation. We look forward to building a presence in this major Fintech hub and the Asia Pacific region with Jeremy leading the way,"
All part of the plan
A spokesperson for Gemini told Cointelegraph that although the platform has been available to Singapore customers since 2016, the move to develop a physical presence in the region, was a natural step forward following the appointment of Julian Sawyer as Managing Director of Europe region in December 2019:
“We’ve long planned to expand in APAC, and it’s the latest in a series of moves that have expanded our international footprint over the past year.”
The spokesperson confirmed the company intends to file for a license under the Payment Services Act with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS):
“We look forward to further expanding our presence in the APAC region and are committed to complying with all regulations — just as we are with our FCA application in the U.K.”
A challenging move
The spokesperson said that each region Gemini expands to has a new set of challenges and financial regulations, and one reason Ng was hired was due to his extensive experience in the local financial markets.