Hong Kong to legalise retail crypto trading, plans to become top digital assets' centre

Hong Kong is shedding its sceptical stance on cryptocurrencies and plans to legalise retail trading in contrast to the ban in mainland China. It has planned a mandatory licencing programme for crypto platforms that would be enforced from March next year to allow retail trading, Bloomberg reported citing sources. Regulators will allow listings of bigger tokens but won’t endorse specific coins like Bitcoin or Ether, and further details and timetable will be announced after as due public consultation, the sources told Bloomberg. The government is likely to share details of its plan of creating a top crypto hub at a fintech conference starting on Monday. The push is part of a drive to restore Hong Kong’s credentials as a finance centre after years of political turmoil and Covid curbs sparked a talent exodus. ALSO READ | Twitterati surprised as Bengaluru tea seller accepts payment in crypto “Introducing mandatory licensing in Hong Kong is just one of the important things regulators have to do,” said Gary Tiu, executive director at crypto firm BC Technology Group Ltd. “They can’t forever effectively close the needs of retail investors.” A spokesperson for Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission declined to comment on the details of the plan. Shares of some crypto-related firms listed in Hong Kong rose on Friday after the development. Regulators across globe are struggling how to manage the highly volatile digital-asset sector, which is picking up the pieces of a $2 trillion rout since a peak in November 2021. The crash toppled a range of crypto outfits while exposing unbridled leverage and deficient risk management, added the Bloomberg report. ALSO READ | Couple in legal trouble after receiving erroneous refund of $10.5 mn from a crypto company Singapore, Hong Kong’s traditional rival for financial business, was buffeted by the implosion and has tightened up its digital-asset rules to curb retail trading. Singapore earlier this week proposed banning leveraged retail token purchases. China declared the crypto sector largely illegal a year ago. Hong Kong has actually been trying to frame an all-encompassing crypto regime going beyond retail token trading, said Michel Lee, executive president of digital-asset specialist HashKey Group. He cited tokenized versions of stocks and bonds as a potentially more important segment in future. “Just trading digital assets on its own is not the goal,” Lee said. “The goal is really to grow the ecosystem.” You can now write for wionews.com and be a part of the community. Share your stories and opinions with us here. WATCH WION LIVE HERE

Hong Kong to legalise retail crypto trading, plans to become top digital assets' centre

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Anuj Shrivastava

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