Zhao Backs Regional Passporting for Crypto Firms Across ASEAN

Binance co-founder Changpeng Zhao has backed an idea for regional licensing passporting across ASEAN, which would allow firms regulated in one market to enter others through a simplified approval process.

This concept was raised by FinTech Alliance PH founding chair Lito Villanueva during the 'One ASEAN, One Digital Economy' fireside chat at the ASEAN Tech Summit Manila 2026. Zhao agreed that regulators could review applicants but should not require them to complete another full licensing application from scratch.

A regional licensing framework could reduce compliance costs and encourage competition in crypto and stablecoin services across ASEAN's fragmented regulatory markets, where member states regulate digital assets separately, creating multiple approval processes for companies seeking a regional presence. 'I think that's mostly a political problem,' Zhao said of cross-border coordination, adding that the technology was simple.

ASEAN has precedents for regional passporting in finance, with the ASEAN Capital Markets Forum's (ACMF) Collective Investment Schemes Framework allowing funds authorized in their home jurisdiction to be offered in participating host jurisdictions through a streamlined authorization process. The forum also introduced the ACMF Pass under its Professional Mobility Framework, which lets eligible investment advisers licensed in one participating jurisdiction receive fast-track registration to provide advisory services in another without obtaining another license.