Securities Commission Malaysia’s Shariah Advisory Council Permits Trading of Digital Assets

The Securities Commission Malaysia (SCM)’s Shariah Advisory Council (SAC) has declared trading in digital assets as permissible, in a landmark announcement made on the 7th of July 2020. Datuk Syed Zaid Albar, Chairman of the SCM, made the announcement at Invest Malaysia 2020 and stated that the SAC has now allowed investment and trading in digital currencies, as well as tokens registered on digital asset exchanges.

According to Kelvyn Chuah, Founder of SINEGY (the first Malaysian digital asset exchange to be approved by the SCM), this is an important announcement given that over 60% of the Malaysian population is Muslim.

Chuah noted that the announcement clarified several ambi...