A man walks past a cryptocurrency exchange store after Bitcoin soars above $100,000, in Hong Kong, China December 5, 2024. REUTERS
Hong Kong’s Finance Secretary Paul Chan delivers the annual budget address at the Legislative Council in Hong Kong, China Feburary 28, 2024. REUTERS
HONG KONG, Feb 19 (Reuters) – Hong Kong is considering approving new cryptocurrency and virtual assets products as derivatives and margin lending for certain investors in those products, according to the city’s financial regulator.
Securities and Futures Commission chief executive Julia Leung said on Wednesday the plans were being assessed as Hong Kong tries to make itself a regional digital assets hub and expand its services to investors.
“We are considering derivative products for professional investors, margin lending for certain customers,” Leung told Coindesk’s Consensus Hong Kong 2025 conference, referring to digital assets.
Hong Kong’s financial secretary Paul Chan on Wednesday said the city’s regulators have issued nine digital asset trading platform licences, and Leung said eight more applications are being considered.
The government is also working to advance the regulation of stablecoin, Chan said.
Hong Kong first drew up a plan to become a virtual asset hub in 2022 – an effort that followed Beijing’s sweeping ban on all crypto transactions in mainland China the previous year.
It has since launched the first spot crypto exchange-traded funds in Asia as well as other initiatives.
Singapore and Dubai are also aiming to become global hubs for virtual assets.
The price of Bitcoin more than doubled last year. It hit an all-time high of $109,071 on January 20 this year, the day of Donald Trump’s inauguration, but has since pulled back to stand around $96,000.
Reporting by Summer Zhen and Jiaxing Li in Hong Kong; writing by Scott Murdoch; Editing by Christian Schmollinger, Edwina Gibbs and Sonali Paul
