Hong Kong’s crypto pivot stirred overwhelming response, top official says

Hong Kong – Hong Kong’s policy shift towards creating a hub for virtual asset businesses has generated overwhelming response, the city’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury Christopher Hui said.

More than 80 institutions and other entities have inquired about expanding in the city, Mr Hui said in a Bloomberg Television interview on Tuesday.

“Hong Kong is one of the pioneers in the world in terms of having a holistic regulatory regime for virtual assets more broadly, rather than crypto per se,” he said, citing the payments, financial stability and investor protection elements of the cryptocurrency policy pivot.

Hong Kong in October 2022 laid out

a vision of becoming a global crypto hub,

seeking to lure investment and restore its status as a cutting-edge financial centre. It is stuck with the plans even as the United States seeks to curb the digital asset sector, which contributed to blow-ups in the nation’s banking industry.

Hong Kong plans to let retail investors trade larger tokens like Bitcoin and Ether, roll out a licensing regime for crypto exchanges on June 1 and implement rules for stablecoins by 2023-2024.

Mr Hui said that about 10 per cent of the roughly 800 fintech companies in the city are virtual asset focused. BLOOMBERG