Hong Kong’s Financial Services and Treasury Bureau issued a policy statement on virtual assets at the opening of the city’s flagship tech conference Hong Kong FinTech Week on Monday. Hong Kong is “ready to engage” with global virtual asset service providers and invite them to the city, the statement says. The jurisdiction’s Legislative Council is currently reviewing Hong Kong’s new VASP licensing regime as part of proposed amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance. The regime is set to come into effect March 1 next year.
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) will conduct a public consultation on how retail investors may be given a “suitable degree of access to virtual assets” to licensed exchanges, according to the policy statement.
Currently, retail customers can trade crypto on unlicensed exchanges such as Binance. After the VASP regime takes effect, only VASP licensed exchanges can offer any crypto services, and some might be able to offer crypto services to retail customers. The policy statement adds that Hong Kong is “open to the possibility” of having exchange-traded funds on virtual assets, pledging to enhance investor protection and ensure suitable regulatory arrangements are in place.
Full story : Hong Kong Government Reconsiders Stance on Virtual Asset ETFs, Tokenized Securities, Retail Investors.