Currently, Hong Kong is endeavouring to turn into a prominent place to facilitate the Web3 sector. Keeping this in view, up to 80 crypto companies in Mainland China as well as other jurisdictions are eager to operate in Hong Kong. On the 20th of March, Christian Hui (Hong Kong’s Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury) made a speech and stated that the city is grasping the attention of several crypto entities.
Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary Says 80 Crypto Companies Want to Offer Their Services in the City
As per the secretary, the digital-asset platforms have been attracted to the jurisdiction since 2022’s October. Hui added that nearly 80 cryptocurrency firms have said that they want to provide their services within Hong Kong. The secretary mentioned that October was the month when the authorities in Hong Kong released a policy statement covering the development of virtual assets. The respective move played a significant role in alluring several companies from around the world.
As per him, twenty-three crypto platforms have in advance revealed a strategy to be a part of the progressive technological endeavours of the city. The platforms took into account virtual-asset exchanges, entities offering securities for blockchain networks, and blockchain infrastructure forums. According to Hui, the respective firms had a great interest in learning additional things regarding the policy statement’s implementation details and the regulatory requirements.
In addition to this, they also want to inquire about the visa requirement to incorporate talent along with the inclusion of the targeted support measures concerning Web3 and virtual assets. Hui is of the view that the city has more than eight hundred fintech firms. In this way, he added, Hong Kong has a significant position to play the role of a well-known jurisdiction to provide support for the Web3 ecosystem.
SFC Eyes Creating a Crypto-Licensing Regime
The secretary also disclosed that Hong Kong has allocated up to $50M for advancement in the Web3 space. Along with this, Hui re-emphasized the strategy of the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) of Hong Kong to make a licensing regime to register the crypto companies in 2023’s June. He brought to the front that this could be assistive to bring more crypto entities to Hong Kong. In this way, he asserted, the city can have additional opportunities to build up a huge crypto business facilitating the citizens.
