As Hong Kong continues its efforts to become a leading global hub for virtual asset services, regulators have acknowledged that crypto trading plays a crucial role.

Opportunities in the space are being debated ahead of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). And as they mark the milestone, officials are talking up Hong Kong’s growing status as a major center of virtual asset activity in the Asia Pacific and beyond.

During an event in Bangkok last week, Leung Fung-yee, the Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (HKSFC), delivered a speech on the city’s new virtual asset licensing regime.

In her speech, Fung-yee said that the Commission’s goal is not to make HKSAR a cryptocurrency trading center. However, she said it recognizes that crypto trading is central to a thriving virtual asset ecosystem.

She discussed the new regulatory framework and stated, “Our regime might be regarded as tough, but we have been transparent, consistent and predictable.” These factors, she argued, will help Hong Kong’s blockchain and crypto sector grow and develop going forward.

While crypto trading remains banned in mainland China, Fung-yee said that the new licensing system in Hong Kong was an example of the “One Country, Two Systems,” approach that has defined the past 25 years of Hong Kong governance.

In an interview this week, the Chairman of the FinTech Association of Hong Kong, Neil Tan, echoed Fung-yee’s comments.

According to Tan, a clear regulatory framework makes HKSAR an attractive destination for global digital asset businesses. He said a difficult regulatory environment in the U.S. and a crackdown on retail crypto trading in Singapore made the territory more crypto-friendly.

Alongside Hong Kong, Tan highlighted efforts made by Dubai to establish a thriving crypto hub in the Middle East.

Like Fung-yee, Tan said that Hong Kong’s emerging crypto space is a good example of the One Country, Two Systems policy. 

He said that Hong Kong acts as a sandbox for innovation. Moreover, he observed that Beijing had expressed an interest in “moving forward” with its own regulatory changes  

This last point is key as there has been much speculation recently that China could lift its crypto ban. 

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Interestingly, both Fung-yee and Tan pointed to the tokenization of securities as one area where Hong Kong could emerge as a world leader.

As Fung-yee explained in her speech: 

“many financial institutions are now exploring how to tokenize financial assets, or develop their own tokens on private blockchains, in order to drive efficiency, provide transparency and resolve some decades-old frictions in clearing, settlement and payments.”

Meanwhile, Tan noted that major institutional players are entering the tokenized securities space. He added that the tokenization of real-world assets would also be “very key” going forward.

Already, Chinese banks have embraced the technology and are using Hong Kong as a launchpad for their new blockchain offerings.

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