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Cryptocurrency
BusinessBanking & Finance

Why Payward chose Hong Kong to be its Asian stablecoin gateway

By setting clear rules, Hong Kong is pushing to become the world’s safest launch pad for the digital currency

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Daren Guo (L), co-founder at Reap, and Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward and Kraken. Photo: Handout
Zoe SL Chan
With its multi-currency advantages and regulatory clarity, Hong Kong has become a critical gateway connecting stablecoins – cryptocurrencies pegged to a stable asset like the US dollar – with traditional finance. Executives said this would help businesses cut costs, lower risks and support expansion into emerging markets.

The city’s unique positioning stemmed from its century-long role as a gateway for international business, said Arjun Sethi, Co-CEO of Payward, the parent company of Kraken – a top-tier cryptocurrency exchange in the United States – in an exclusive interview with the South China Morning Post.

Stablecoins and blockchain technology were reshaping the city into a global, round-the-clock liquidity hub, enabling businesses in regions with weak banking infrastructure, such as Africa and Latin America, to access capital at any time, Sethi said.

Payward recently completed a US$600 million acquisition of Hong Kong-based Reap Technologies, a stablecoin-native payments infrastructure provider, marking its first and largest such acquisition in Asia.

“We’re going to expand into Asia, including expansion into Singapore, through Hong Kong. This is our gateway as a company and that’s what we decided,” Sethi said when evaluating the two financial hubs, noting that both naturally attracted distinct financial services.

Sethi emphasised that legacy banking networks and SWIFT – the global financial messaging system – were often inefficient or practically non-existent in parts of Africa and Latin America. These structural gaps meant weekend delays could disrupt entire supply chains, he added.
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