Bursa Malaysia has said that it has no plans to begin offering cryptocurrency on its multi-asset exchange.

According to the chief executive officer of Bursa Malaysia, Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift, the exchange had already looked into the asset class, along with its exchange traded funds (ETFs). Following that, it made the decision to exclude the offering as it does not comply with Bursa Malaysia’s mission to support the creation of opportunities and to grow value.  

“Our purpose is to help companies raise capital, expand, employ people and make profit. Crypto does not do that, it does not fulfil that basic premise. It is trading for the sake of trading. I understand that people are attracted to it, but we get back to our purpose, and our purpose is the bigger market,” explained Datuk Muhamad Umar, adding that cryptocurrency is not a real asset as it does not have any intrinsic value.

Bursa Malaysia had recently rebranded itself as a multi-asset exchange, listing new offerings like gold investment (through Bursa Gold Dinar), carbon credit trading (through Bursa Carbon Exchange), and debt fundraising for eligible issuers (through BR Capital). It is also preparing to introduce Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) by the third quarter of 2024.

Meanwhile, Bitcoin – which is the world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation – recently surged to a new all-time high, soaring up to approximately US$73,800. In Malaysia, Bitcoin price hit a new all-time high in early March after breaching the RM300,000 mark.

(Source: News Straits Times)

• TAGS:
• Bitcoin
• BR Capital
• Bursa Gold Dinar
• Bursa Malaysia
• Cryptocurrency
• Datuk Muhamad Umar Swift
• Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs)