Hong Kong's new crypto regulations attracts brokers

Hong Kong's new crypto regulations attracts brokers
Hong Kong's new crypto regulations attracts brokers

​Hong Kong's new cryptocurrency regulatory regime, launched in August 2023 and designed to make the city a major Asian hub for digital assets, is attracting a growing number of companies. 

 Under the rules, cryptocurrency companies will be able to offer trading services to individuals and institutions as long as they secure and adhere to licenses designed to protect investors from risky practices exposed in the 2022 crash. 

After many major cryptocurrency exchanges applied for new licenses and entered Hong Kong's digital asset market, it was the brokerage firms' turn. 

In January, China-based Tiger Brokers expanded the status of its license issued by the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to include cryptocurrency trading for professional investors and financial institutions based in Hong Kong, Cointelegraph reported. 

Confirming the company's entry into the Hong Kong crypto market, John Fei Zeng, head of Tiger Brokers, said, "Tiger Brokers (HK) has now obtained a license to trade virtual assets for professional investors through the SFC-licensed virtual asset platform and will serve retail clients upon approval from the SFC." 

"Hong Kong residents will be able to trade virtual assets such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, as well as stocks, options, futures, funds, and ETFs," Fei Zeng said. 

Meanwhile, the company has stepped up efforts to expand its offering in Hong Kong to include altcoins. To do so, the company said it needs to obtain the relevant approvals. 

Earlier, Hong Kong-based brokerage firm Victory Securities also received a license from the SFC to provide cryptocurrency trading services to retail investors. The company said the license contributed to an influx of new clients and more than doubled digital asset transactions in the third quarter. 

Similarly, Interactive Brokers partnered with cryptocurrency exchange OSL to launch digital asset trading for retail clients in Hong Kong. Interactive Brokers' Hong Kong clients will benefit from centralized cash management by being able to trade cryptocurrencies such as BTC and ETH, as well as stocks, options, futures, currencies, bonds, mutual funds, exchange-traded funds (ETFs), event contracts, cryptocurrency futures, and futures options, all from one account and interface. 

Read also: Japan to Allow crypto investments for VCs

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