New licenses for virtual asset platforms

Hong Kong regulators have committed to issuing new licenses for cryptocurrency trading platforms in the country after a lengthy review process.

According to Chinese media SINA Finance, executive director of the Hong Kong intermediary department Securities and Futures CommissionYe Zhiheng, declared that new virtual asset licenses will soon be issued. No exact date has yet been revealed, but the commissioner suggests “good news” for the first quarter of 2025.

Ye, who is also chairman of the country’s Fintech Advisory Group, said that last year the SFC inspected almost all applicants on site. He assured that applicants were informed directly by the SFC of the requirements they must meet to be eligible for a license. Crypto platforms were also given ample time to respond to SFC notices throughout the review process.

However, Ye said there was “no guarantee” that the 11 platforms will get licenses, due to “regulatory red lines” they must follow. These red lines include taking measures to ensure investor protection and security requirements, among other operational standards.

You hope that in a month or two, the SFC will be able to share some “good news.”

At the end of December, the People’s Bank of China gave credit to Hong Kong regulators for their active efforts to issue more operating licenses for cryptocurrency trading platforms. The central bank has recognized the growing importance of crypto globally, as more countries work to accommodate the crypto industry through licensing and regulatory measures.

Despite promising to issue more licenses for crypto platforms in the near future, Hong Kong remains fall behind countries like Singapore that issued twice as many crypto licenses in 2024 compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong has reportedly faced regulatory hurdles that have clearly slowed down the licensing process. In October, Hong Kong’s SFC estimated that a new batch of crypto licenses would be approved by the end of 2024. This target has now been pushed back to early 2025.

In the case of mining licenses, Hong Kong divides cryptocurrencies into two categories: security tokens and non-secure tokens. Security tokens are governed by the licensing standards of the Hong Kong SFC regulatory framework. On the other hand, non-secure tokens comply with the National Anti-Money Laundering Bill.