SINGAPORE - Validus Capital announced on Monday (Dec 11) that it has been awarded a full Capital Markets Services (CMS) licence by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), to deal in securities - a move that may give Singapore's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) more access to financing opportunities.

Peer-to-peer (P2P) lending platform, Validus - backed by Temasek Holdings' venture capital arm Vertex - was founded in 2015 with a focus on helping SMEs secure short and medium-term financing from investors through its curated financing marketplace.

With the licence, Validus will be able to offer SMEs its suite of financing products, including project financing and working capital loans.

Ajit Raikar, Validus CEO and co-founder said: "We are delighted to obtain the much anticipated CMS licence as it will allow us to forge ahead with a wide range of products to help SMEs scale and grow their businesses."We have been working diligently in the last year to ensure that our processes are robust enough to meet MAS's guidelines. Fintech is an area of focus for Singapore which is clearly demonstrated in the forward-looking vision of the authorities."