By FARA AISYAH / Pic By TMR

Country Heights Holdings Bhd will wait for the digital token framework to be issued by the Securities Commission Malaysia (SC) before it pushes for its own asset-backed cryptocurrency called Horse Currency.

The SC will formulate the Capital Markets and Services (Prescription of Securities) (Digital Currency and Digital Token) Order 2019, which will become the guiding laws for Malaysia’s cryptocurrency ecosystem. The regulatory framework is expected in March this year.

Country Heights executive chairman Tan Sri Lee Kim Yew (picture) hopes the regulation would not be lopsided and oriented to financial services, and will not limit the development of blockchain technology, especially on utility-based tokens.

“My dream and deepest hope is that Malaysian entrepreneurs can have access to capital without paying high interest, and instead use a profit-sharing model.

“With this regulatory framework, this dream will come one step closer.

“All entrepreneurs should be able to benefit from this era of shared economy by using blockchain technology and tokenisation to realise the dreams of each and every individual.

“We should be able to walk tall in this digital world,” he said in a statement yesterday.

Malaysia’s Capital Markets and Services Order 2019 has come into force yesterday.

Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng said this allows the SC to regulate digital assets as prescribed securities.

“The offering of such instrument, as well as its associated activities, will require authorisation from the SC and need to comply with the relevant securities laws and regulations,” Lim said in a statement on Monday.

“We believe digital assets have a role to play as an alternative fundraising avenue for entrepreneurs and new businesses, and an alternate asset class for investors.

“In this regard, the SC will put in place the relevant regulatory requirements for the issuance of initial coin offerings (ICOs) and the trading of digital assets at digital asset exchanges in Malaysia,” he added.

The Order 2019 allows the government to punish any ICO activities and digital asset exchanges that operate without the SC’s approval with up to 10 years of imprisonment or fined not less than RM10 million.