An executive at the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has said that developments around initial coin offerings (ICOs) and cryptocurrencies can offer lessons for regulators.

Yao Loong Ng, executive director of MAS’ financial markets strategy department, said that, although many are skeptical on the “speculative” use cases of the technology, regulators “have the fiduciary duty to be alert on the potential outcome.”

As reported by Edge Markets, Ng indicated that the “time to market” for ICOs compares favorably with IPOs, which can take nine months to prepare.

He said:

“If the process of writing a white paper for [an] ICO and subsequently listing on an exchange could take a matter of days, then clearly it is something that we can learn from.”

Ng made his comments during a panel discussion at the ASEAN Capital Markets Conference in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday.

The news follow last week’s announcement from Malaysia’s securities regulator that it is working on “relevant regulations and guidelines” for functional use cases of digital assets.

Earlier in August, MAS issued a notice warning investors to be cautious of the potential risks around ICOs and virtual currency-related investment schemes.

MAS image via Shutterstock