When the new licensing program arrives which is scheduled for June, retail traders in Hong Kong will be limited to “highly liquid” digital assets, according to the new chief executive of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), Julia Leung. . Fung-yee.
At the recent Asia Financial Forum, Leung noted that many digital asset platforms have thousands of products. However, the SFC executive stressed that they do not plan to “allow retail investors to deal with all of them.” Instead, the SFC will establish criteria that allow retail traders to trade only major virtual assets.
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While the SFC executive did not provide further details on which assets will be available for trading, Leung mentioned that these will be “deeply liquid” assets. When asked about Bitcoin (BTC) or Ether (ETH), the SFC executive did not respond but reiterated that “highly liquid” assets will be allowed.
Despite the limitations that will be placed on retail investors, Leung highlighted that they are moving to position Hong Kong as a hub for virtual assets. “Our goal is to have a proper regulatory framework to safeguard the interests of all investors and enhance Hong Kong as a hub for virtual assets,” she said.
The CEO also pointed out that with proper regulation, problems like the collapse of the FTX exchange can also be prevented in Hong Kong.
At a recent event, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan said that many crypto companies are applying to set up shop in Hong Kong. The official highlighted that the government is doing its best to provide proper oversight to the crypto space to harness the potential of Web3 technology.
Related: Hong Kong brokers line up for SFC approval ahead of new virtual asset trading legislation
Digital assets have recently been a hot topic in the special administrative region. On January 5, a Hong Kong official floated the idea of making the digital Hong Kong dollar a stablecoin. Wu Jiezhuang, a member of the legislative council, believes this could address the risks related to digital assets on Web3.
This post Hong Kong watchdog aims to restrict retailers to liquid products
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