Key Takeaways
- Representatives from the China Liaison Office have been frequenting Hong Kong crypto gatherings to get a grasp of what’s going on.
- National People’s Congress member Nick Chan states that as long as it doesn’t threaten financial stability in China, “Hong Kong is free to explore its own pursuit under ‘One Country, Two Systems,”.
Hong Kong’s effort to integrate crypto into its economy is receiving subtle backing from Mainland China, according to the latest Bloomberg report. The report comes a day after Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) published its proposed rules for virtual asset trading platforms.
Reportedly,representatives from the China Liaison Office have been frequenting Hong Kong crypto gatherings to get a grasp of what’s going on. Bloomberg report states that the tone of their visits and follow-up calls with certain crypto projects has been friendly.
In the report, National People’s Congress member and digital asset lawyer Nick Chan stated that as long as one doesn’t violate the bottom line, and does not threaten financial stability in China, “Hong Kong is free to explore its own pursuit under ‘One Country, Two Systems,”.
Recently, Hong Kong’s SFC has geared up its efforts to present the state as a cryptocurrency hub. On February 20, SFC put forth a new crypto license regime that proposed that all centralized exchanges that operate in the region must secure a license from the regulatory body.
Some of the requirements the SFC proposes to get a retail crypto license involves a due diligence process on tokens prior to listing, which would see only pre-approved tokens available to traders, and setting up a risk profile for clients to ensure their exposure is “reasonable.”
The regulatory body also plans to publish as well as maintain a list of licensed crypto exchanges and service providers to keep the general public informed of the registration statuses of different firms.
The regulatory changes are working in favor of the region as many leading crypto exchanges like Huobi Global is seeking a license in Hong Kong. Huobi plans to open a new exchange named Huobi Hong Kong that would mainly concentrate on institutional and high-net-worth individuals, according to Justin Sun.
According to local media Nikkei Asia, Huobi is considering shifting its headquarters to Hong Kong from Singapore.
