Singapore Reaping USD 270,000 from ‘ICO Refugees’

Singaporean companies are garnering rich benefits from South Korea’s ICO (initial coin offering) ban, per blockchain experts in both countries.

Media outlet Finance Today quotes the owner of a South Korean company that has recently launched an ICO in Singapore as saying, “It costs up to USD 270,000 in consultancy and legal fees for a South Korean company to launch an ICO here. And on top of that, we need to pay our taxes to the Singaporean government – not to Seoul.”

The same outlet also quotes a South Korean industry professional as saying that overseas blockchain investment could also evaporate in South Korea if the government does not change its tack on ICOs, saying foreign investors see “no reason to do business” in a country that does not allow ICOs.

A Singapore-based blockchain consultant whose company caters to South Korean companies told the media outlet, “A lot of South Korean firms come here looking to launch ICOs, but most don’t have the first idea about Singapore’s ICO regulations. They could run into tax-related issues in the future. If the South Korean government issued clearer standards, they wouldn’t come to Singapore and take all the risks involved with launching an overseas ICO.”

Seoul has distanced itself from talk of reversing its ICO ban, imposed in September last year – despite demands from the country’s parliament, as well as the blockchain industry and individual MPs.