Hong Kong virtual lender ZA Bank eyes retail services for digital assets as new regulations come into effect in June
- Hong Kong’s largest virtual bank is preparing to introduce virtual asset trading services for retail investors, CEO Ronald Iu says
- SFC will roll out the new regulatory regime for digital asset trading exchanges from June 1
ZA Bank, the city’s largest virtual lender, is scoping out opportunities to roll out services related to virtual assets after the new digital asset regulatory regime is introduced in June.
The lender already offers banking services for digital assets trading platforms.
“We are diligently preparing to introduce virtual asset trading services for retail investors,” CEO Ronald Iu Man-chung said in an interview. “We will announce more details to our customers once all preparation work is complete.”
ZA Bank’s planned expansion into the digital asset sector comes as Hong Kong’s mandatory licensing regime for centralised cryptocurrency exchanges takes effect from June 1.
OSL and HashKey are currently the only exchanges licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to serve retail investors, while 24 cryptocurrency firms submitted their applications by the February 29 deadline that would determine whether they could continue to operate in the city. Cryptocurrency exchanges operating or marketing in Hong Kong that have not yet submitted an application must now leave the city by May 31.