Hong Kong’s financial secretary says the city will remain an open market for crypto as it tries to position itself as a regional crypto hub.
Hong Kong financial secretary Paul Chan Mo-po said in a keynote address at Consensus 2025 that as the Web3 ecosystem continues to evolve, Hong Kong would “remain a stable, open and vibrant market for digital assets.”
“We are investing heavily in the related infrastructure and talent development,” he said.
“Our cyberpunk and science park have become vibrant hubs for Web3 innovation and fintech, while our universities and partnerships with the industry are nurturing generations of blockchain experts,” Mo-po added.
Hong Kong has long been trying to position itself as a center for financial innovation. Its Cyberport Web3 network — a state-run business hub promoting digital asset innovation — now features over 270 blockchain firms, having added more than 120 in the past 17 months.
Hong Kong, a Special Administrative Region of China, has also proposed initiatives such as exempting crypto gains from taxes for hedge funds, private equity and family investment vehicles, among other regulations.
“The key to success lies in maintaining an open, fair, balanced and forward-looking regulatory approach that is conducive to the sustainable and responsible development of financial innovation, including Web3,” Mo-po said.
So far, the region’s Securities and Futures Commission has only issued nine crypto licenses since starting a licensing drive in mid-last year.
The two most recent came in January when the SFC awarded operational licenses to two Hong Kong-based crypto exchanges, PantherTrade and YAX.
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At the same time, Mo-po says one of the more “exciting developments” on the horizon is the intersection of artificial intelligence and blockchain, as “AI is constantly evolving and increasingly applied to finance.”
“Its convergence with blockchain will create more use cases, with both new opportunities to be captured and challenges to be addressed; Hong Kong has set out a clear policy on the use of AI in financial services,” he said.
“The government and our financial regulators are working closely with the industry to monitor technology and market development and establish a transparent supervisory framework.”
Hong Kong’s Financial Services and Treasury Bureau issued a dual-track policy for AI adoption in finance last October.
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Additional reporting by Ciaran Lyons.
