Singapore Police launch investigation into illegal trading of Worldcoin accounts and tokens

Seven people are under suspicion of providing services for the purchase and sale of Worldcoin assets, and Singapore police have opened an investigation into the alleged illegal trading of these assets.

Deputy Prime Minister and chairman of MAS Mr Gan Kim Yong announced the investigation on Monday. The suspects are alleged to have offered services to buy and sell Worldcoin accounts, which may have violated the country's Payment Services Act 2019 (PS Act). The law stipulates that only individuals who are exempt or licensed entities may conduct these kinds of transactions.

Minister Gan addressed questions from Ms. Rachel Ong and Mr. Derrick Goh regarding the regulation of Worldcoin's operations in Singapore and the existence of laws pertaining to the sale of Worldcoin accounts to third-party agents in exchange for financial incentives during a Monday parliamentary session.

On August 7, 2024, the police also released a press release cautioning the public not to sell or give away their Worldcoin accounts, as these could be used for illegal purposes like financing terrorism and money laundering.

In Singapore, the 2019 Payment Services Act regulates financial transactions and payment services, including money transfers and digital payment tokens (DPTs). Its goal is to give payment service providers a legal framework that will guarantee the safe and secure operation of services and protect customers from monetary risks. According to the Act, in order for payment service providers to conduct lawful business in Singapore, they must apply for and receive the required licenses from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

Worldcoin's iris biometric data collection system is being closely examined by major global regulators. In 2023, iris collections were put on hold while regulators in Brazil, Germany, South Korea, Kenya, and India looked into the company's data collection procedures.

OpenAI founder Sam Altman's cryptocurrency project Worldcoin is currently facing criticism in Hong Kong, where officials are looking into its activities to see if it broke any federal privacy laws in the nation.

In a media release on May 22 this year, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner for Personal Data (PCPD) in Hong Kong stated that there were significant risks to the privacy of personal data associated with the Worldcoin cryptocurrency project. Meanwhile, the project is being investigated by Colombian authorities for possible privacy violations.

Spain was the first nation to ban the collection of biometric data by Worldcoin on March 18. In spite of these obstacles, Worldcoin continued to grow rapidly, and as of April 16, it had over 10 million users.

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