Hong Kong has awarded its first stablecoin issuer licences to HSBC and a joint venture led by Standard Chartered, marking the city's latest step towards becoming a global digital asset hub. HSBC plans to launch its Hong Kong dollar stablecoin in the second half of this year, integrating it into its PayMe and mobile banking platforms.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced on Friday that it has granted the city's first stablecoin issuer licences to HSBC and a joint venture led by Standard Chartered. This marks Hong Kong's latest effort to embrace cryptocurrency under the Stablecoin Ordinance.
HSBC Hong Kong CEO Maggie Ng said the stablecoin will not pay interest but will enable fast settlement, with the bank or merchants offering awards to encourage usage. The initial phase will support peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers, peer-to-merchant payments, and subscriptions to tokenised investments via the app. Next year, HSBC could expand to stablecoins pegged to other currencies.
HKMA deputy chief executive Darryl Chan stated: “The two applicants have experience in traditional finance and risk management, which fits the mission of stablecoins that aim to bridge traditional finance and digital finance.”
The licences position Hong Kong to integrate the most-traded cryptocurrency cash substitute into its financial ecosystem as it bids to become a global digital asset hub.
