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Hong Kong is broadening cryptocurrency trading opportunities for individual investors, with at least one exchange receiving regulatory approval to provide these services.
Local digital asset company HashKey has successfully secured all required licenses to transition its operations from catering to professional investors to including retail users, as announced on Aug. 3.
HashKey’s recent regulatory achievement has been made possible by upgrading two key licenses granted by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC).
The first license, Type 1, permits HashKey to run a virtual asset trading platform in accordance with Hong Kong’s securities regulations. The second, Type 7, formally allows the firm to offer automated trading services to both institutional and retail clients, as noted in the announcement.
In addition to becoming one of the initial licensed exchanges to provide retail crypto trading in Hong Kong, HashKey has also officially introduced its crypto over-the-counter (OTC) trading service, HashKey Brokerage. The OTC platform is reported to comply with local securities regulations following the implementation of a new crypto regulatory framework by the SFC.
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HashKey Group chief operating officer Livio Weng expressed optimism regarding the establishment of licensed trading platforms and the enhanced clarity of regulatory frameworks in Hong Kong. He added:
“The industry as a whole will witness increased transparency, leading to a significant boost in investor confidence.”
HashKey is not the only cryptocurrency exchange that is now fully prepared to legally offer crypto trading to retail users in Hong Kong. OSL, another local crypto firm, also announced on Aug. 3 that it received an upgrade to its existing license from the SFC, enabling it to provide Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH) trading to retail investors immediately.
"We have been fully regulated for virtual asset trading by the SFC since 2020," OSL co-founder Dave Chapman told Cointelegraph. He emphasized that the recent licensing upgrade allows OSL to enhance access to digital assets for retail investors.
The announcement follows a statement from an executive at the Hong Kong-based Hang Seng Bank, who indicated that crypto companies can only open bank accounts after obtaining an approval-in-principle license from the SFC. By early August, OSL and HashKey were reportedly the only exchanges that had received such approval.
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