Eddie Yue, CEO of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, said today that the cryptocurrency market is “not yet mature” and will continue to develop.
“This allows stablecoins to become an interface between traditional finance and virtual asset markets,” Yue said. name. “In a scenario where stablecoins become one of the preferred payment options for the general public, we should reasonably expect further integration between the digital payments ecosystem and the real economy, and whether stablecoins are actually ‘stable’ will become even more important. It will. ”
Yue’s remarks were jointly announced by the HKMA, Hong Kong’s de facto central bank, and the Department of Financial Services and Finance. A consultation paper was published today to gain more power to regulate Issuer of a “Fiat Reference Stablecoin”.
The Hong Kong government appears to have confirmed the growth potential of cryptocurrency. “The clear growth potential of virtual assets as innovative technologies has been largely overshadowed by price volatility, particularly their rapid growth during the COVID-19 pandemic and the collapse of virtual assets following a series of market events since early 2022, hampering market confidence.” Yu said.
Exploring the use of CBDC
“Hong Kong has a variety of mediums of exchange that have been widely used and proven effective over time, including traditional bank deposits and store-of-value facilities,” Yue said. “The HKMA and the banking industry have also been actively exploring potential use cases for central bank digital currencies and tokenized deposits.”
“The obvious question is, with all these options, do we really need another alternative? We believe the answer lies in the hands of the end user, who ultimately decides which option is best for them,” he added.
Unlike neighboring mainland China’s widespread crackdown on cryptocurrency trading and mining, Hong Kong has rolled out the welcome mat for cryptocurrency companies this year. Encouraging banks to cooperate with them. Last June, Hong Kong officially launched a cryptocurrency licensing regime for virtual asset trading platforms, allowing licensed exchanges to offer retail trading services.
Last week, the HKMA and the Securities and Futures Commission stated in a joint circular: We are ready to begin accepting applications In the case of spot cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds (ETFs). Some industry leaders say Hong Kong You can be one of the first leaders Asia accepts spot Bitcoin ETFs If the US approves such an ETF.
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