Singapore’s central bank urged consumers to act with “extreme caution” when it comes to investing in cryptocurrencies, following several steps taken by the country to regulate or consolidate use of digital tokens such as bitcoin.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore, or MAS, said in a statement to Reuters that it “considers the recent surge in the prices of cryptocurrencies to be driven by speculation.”

The bank also warned that “the risk of a sharp reduction in prices is high,” and reminded consumers that it does not regulate cryptocurrencies, so there are currently no safeguards in place for those types of investments.

This follows several other actions taken in Singapore to  better control use of crypto, including closing the bank accounts of several firms dealing in cryptocurrency in September 2017.

Read more at Reuters and the NYTimes.

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