Singapore family office Whampoa Group recruited Ali Moosa from JPMorgan Chase & Co to help oversee a digital bank in Bahrain whose services include payments and settlement for crypto companies.

Moosa becomes executive vice-chairman at Singapore Gulf Bank, ending a three-decade spell at JPMorgan where he last served as regional head and vice-chairman of the central and eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa businesses, Whampoa Group said in a statement on Monday (Aug 28).

Ready access to banking remains a challenge for crypto companies because of the risks exposed by the digital-asset rout last year. The crash contributed to blow-ups such as the collapse of the FTX exchange amid allegations of fraud.

Whampoa Group received an in-principle approval in May from Bahrain to set up Singapore Gulf Bank and plans to launch it in December.

The lender is intended to bridge conventional and digital financial services and facilitate financial integration between Asia and the Middle East and North Africa.

More senior appointments at the new lender will be announced in coming months, Shawn Chan, chief executive of Whampoa Group, said in the statement.

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Bahrain, Dubai and Abu Dhabi are among the Middle Eastern jurisdictions aiming to develop crypto hubs that both protect investors and prove attractive to companies specialising in blockchain-based technology and services. BLOOMBERG