- The Hong Kong authorities said they are working on establishing a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers by June 2023.
- Over 80 virtual asset-related businesses have expressed interest in establishing their presence in the city as of the end of February.
- The Hong Kong government is also working on a comprehensive regulatory regime for stablecoins, which it plans to implement by 2024.
Hong Kong Crypto Firms Interested in Establishing Presence
The Hong Kong authorities said they were working on establishing a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers by June 2023. Over 80 virtual asset-related businesses had expressed interest in establishing their presence in the city as of the end of February. 23 crypto businesses have already indicated they „plan to establish their presence in Hong Kong.“ These businesses include blockchain infrastructure companies, blockchain network security companies, virtual currency wallets, payment companies, and other projects building on the web3 ecosystem.
Regulatory Drive Underway
In addition to setting up a licensing regime for virtual asset service providers by June 2023, the Hong Kong government is also launching a comprehensive regulatory regime for stablecoins that it expects to implement by 2024. Furthermore, the city has been collaborating with Mainland China to test the use of digital Renminbi (Digital Yuan) in making cross-boundary payments. The government is also looking into issues pertinent to potential issuance of an e-Hong Kong dollar.
Vibrant FinTech Ecosystem
Hong Kong already possesses a vibrant fintech ecosystem with more than 800 companies providing financial services for both public and business sector members. The Secretary for Financial Services and Treasury Christopher Hui stated that this wave of interest from crypto firms was coming on the back of its policy statement on Virtual Asset Development.
