The bottleneck

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Every structure in this Part fails without a bank account. The Zug GmbH cannot be registered until its capital is deposited at a Swiss bank. The Singapore Pte. Ltd. cannot sponsor an Employment Pass or pay a salary without an account. The foundation cannot pay its auditor, the fund cannot receive subscriptions and the founder cannot pay rent. Yet the bank account is the one element of the structure that no lawyer can deliver, because banks decide for themselves whom they serve. For a decade they have decided against most digital-asset businesses. This chapter describes what has changed, what banks ask, how to answer and which institutions in each hub are, on 30 June 2026, open to the sector.

The position has improved in Switzerland since 2019 and in Singapore since 2024, for different reasons. In Switzerland the Swiss Bankers Association published guidance in 2018 on opening accounts for blockchain companies. Sygnum and AMINA obtained banking licences in 2019, after which the cantonal banks of Zug, Zürich and Lucerne followed the market into the sector.¹ In Singapore the 2022 collapses made the banks more cautious. The DTSP cut-off of 30 June 2025 then gave them a clearer rule. A digital-asset business that holds an MAS licence is a client the banks will consider. One without a licence is a client they will refuse.²

Notes

Swiss Bankers Association, "Guidelines on opening corporate accounts for blockchain companies", September 2018 (revised 2019); FINMA, media release of 26 August 2019 (banking and securities dealer licences for Sygnum Bank AG and SEBA Crypto AG). Part C, Chapter III. ↩
MAS, "Response to Feedback Received on Proposed Regulatory Approach for Digital Token Service Providers", 30 May 2025; Association of Banks in Singapore, industry guidance on the risk assessment of digital payment token service providers (2023). Part K, Chapter V, and Part L, Chapter V. ↩

For general information only. This article does not constitute legal or tax advice, does not replace advice on an individual case and creates no lawyer-client relationship. It reflects the legal position as of October 2026.

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Dr Alexander Ressos, TEP

Of Counsel, KGP Legal LLC

I am Of Counsel with KGP Legal LLC in Singapore, where I work with a global client base of successful entrepreneurs and their families, independent asset managers, commodity trading houses and other commercial clients. I am a German and Swiss attorney-at-law, also admitted as a solicitor in England & Wales and in Hong Kong. I divide my time between Zug in Switzerland, Singapore and Hong Kong. Since 2017 I have advised international clients on more than 700 crypto and digital asset projects. I also have extensive experience in cross-border litigation and arbitration in Singapore, Hong Kong and other markets in South-East Asia and Greater China.

I operate across the key financial centres in South-East Asia, the Middle East and Switzerland, with a particular focus on asset protection, international tax and estate planning, as well as trusts, company administration and other fiduciary services. My philosophy is to serve as a trusted advisor working closely with my clients and to help them achieve their commercial objectives.

All Singapore law advice is provided through KGP Legal LLC, an established and duly licensed firm of Singapore advocates and solicitors.

KGP Legal LLC is a medium-sized law firm in Singapore that is capable of providing the full range of legal services and corporate administration work. Please contact me if you need any further information.

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SingaporeIQ is edited by Dr Alexander Ressos, an international business lawyer with more than 15 years of local experience in Singapore as a permanent resident, a Singapore registered foreign lawyer and managing partner of a Singapore foreign law practice. In addition to significant experience in cross-border investments and transactions, UHNWI private client work and sanctions/export controls, Dr Ressos has extensive experience in cross-border business and in crypto and digital-asset projects in Singapore, drawn from more than 700 projects since 2017.

If you are planning a company incorporation, an investment, a holding structure or a market entry through Singapore, you can reach Dr Ressos directly at [email protected]. Singapore law advice is provided by KGP Legal LLC, a licensed firm of Singapore advocates and solicitors. Dr Ressos and his team facilitate the full range of Singapore legal, compliance and company administration services, including company incorporation, corporate transactions, commercial contracts, crypto and digital assets, financial regulatory work and dispute resolution, including litigation in the Singapore courts. For Hong Kong, our parallel site HongkongIQ.com offers the same practical guidance. For crypto and digital assets, dltreg.com covers legal, tax and fiduciary services. For legal, tax and fiduciary services in Switzerland, see helveticaregister.com.