Binance Singapore appoints former Abu Dhabi Global Market CEO

By Leandra Monteiro

Binance Singapore, a fiat-to-crypto platform for trading of cryptocurrencies in Singapore Dollars (SGD), announced the appointment of Richard Teng, former CEO of Financial Services Regulatory Authority at Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), as Chief Executive Officer (CEO).

Mr. Teng played a pivotal role in enabling ADGM to gain international recognition by global regulators and industry bodies. Under his leadership, ADGM grew from being a newly established financial centre to having nearly 2,700 registered licenses in issue and more than 150 approved financial institutions in less than five years.

Prior to joining ADGM, Mr. Teng was the Chief Regulatory Officer of the Singapore Exchange (SGX). He led the regulation group responsible for policy, framework and rule formulation in the areas of listing, trading and clearing as well as regulatory solutioning for new products and services. Before joining SGX, Mr. Teng spent 13 years with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), where he rose to become the Director of Corporate Finance.

“I am thrilled to be joining Binance Singapore at this pivotal time for the blockchain and crypto industry,” Mr. Teng said. “I look forward to working with the talented team at Binance Singapore in furthering our business growth in a responsive and sustainable manner by meeting the needs of investors, adhering with best practices and complying with regulatory standards. We are witnessing rapid mainstream adoption of the blockchain and crypto technology, leading to the need for greater understanding and appreciation amongst individuals, institutions and governments. We seek to work closely with industry leaders and policymakers to enhance understanding of this fast growing industry and support its sustainable growth.”

Binance Singapore offers Singapore citizens and residents trading pairs for Bitcoin (BTC), Ethereum (ETH) and Binance Coin (BNB). The platform provides SGD deposit and withdrawal functionality via Xfers Direct. Launched in 2019 with the backing of Vertex Ventures China as well as Vertex Ventures Southeast Asia and India, Binance Singapore has been building strategic relationships to help drive more product innovation. Most recently, Binance Singapore announced a Memorandum of Understanding with the locally licensed firm CapBridge.

Changpeng Zhao (CZ), Founder and CEO of Binance said, “Richard is a seasoned Board and C-level leader with three decades of financial services and regulatory experience. We are delighted to have Richard leading the Binance Singapore team in securing more strategic partnerships, fostering innovation and furthering the local cryptocurrency ecosystem in Singapore.”

“Binance is not only a leader in technology innovation — we will also be a leader in regulatory compliance. Having Richard joining us is a big step in that direction.”