Blockchain.com gets license to offer crypto services in Singapore

Blockchain.com, a London-based cryptocurrency exchange, has secured an preliminary approval Wednesday from the Monetary Authority of Singapore to operate in the country, according to a blog post.The news comes on the heels of Coinbase Global (COIN) expanding its global footprint by gaining in-principle approval to offer its crypto services in Singapore.Blockchain.com sees Singapore "as an attractive city-state to invest in the growth of its institutional customers and its team, as the most advanced economy in Southeast Asia," it said.The expansion, though, comes against a backdrop of suppressed digital token prices driven by global monetary tightening, growing recession fears and stubbornly high inflation. As such, Blockchain.com was said to have slashed 25% of its headcount after CoinDesk reported that the company stood to lose $270M from lending to insolvent crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital.In September, Reuters reported that Blockchain.com won provisional regulatory approval to operate in Dubai.