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SFC
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Hong Kong’s SFC to publish names of cryptocurrency platform applicants, walking back on reluctance in face of ‘public demand’

  • The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) will publish the list due to public demand, said its CEO Julia Leung Fung-yee
  • Being an applicant does not mean the companies are fully compliant with the SFC’s regulations, she added

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(From left) SFC’s executive director of enforcement Christopher Wilson, chief executive officer Julia Leung and head of fintech unit Elizabeth Wong, at a press conference on September 25, 2023. Photo: Sam Tsang
Xinmei ShenandNatalie Wong

Hong Kong’s securities regulator said it would publish a list of companies that had applied for licences to offer cryptocurrency trading services to retailers, walking back on its reluctance to do so in the face of public backlash over JPEX’s debacle.

The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) will publish the list due to public demand, said the regulator’s chief executive officer Julia Leung Fung-yee, at a press conference today. Being an applicant does not mean the companies are fully compliant with the SFC’s regulations, she added.

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The cryptocurrency scandal gripping Hong Kong

The cryptocurrency scandal gripping Hong Kong
Only two cryptocurrency trading platforms – OSL Digital Securities Limited and Hash Blockchain Limited – had been licensed to serve Hong Kong’s retail customers since the SFC’s new virtual asset rules came into effect on June 1.

Four other companies had applied for licences, the SFC said: HKVAX, HKBitEx, Hong Kong BGE Limited and Victory Fintech Company Limited.

Lawmakers welcomed the move, with Jeffery Lam Kin-fung describing the disclosure of applicants as an “an overdue spring” policy that could boost investors’ faith in the regulatory system.

The legislature’s panel on financial affairs decided to add an agenda item for October 9 to discuss the regulation of virtual asset trading platforms.

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