The Hong Kong Monetary Authority encouraged firms to apply for a stablecoin license by the end of August.
Only a few stablecoin licenses will be issued, Hong Kong Monetary Authority CEO Eddie Yue said.
Hong Kong’s government already issued $100 million in tokenized green bonds on Feb. 16 under its Green Bond Programme.
Hong Kong’s central bank said it may be illegal for unlicensed companies to represent themselves as banks in Hong Kong.
This development aligns with the city’s regulatory goals and represents a forward-thinking approach to integrating traditional banking with cutting-edge financial technologies.
Hong Kong's financial regulators published the conclusions of consultation on fiat-referenced stablecoin regulation and said they are preparing a bill to introduce into the Legislative Council later this year.
Asset Manager VSFG, together with its partners, Value Partners, have applied for a spot-bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF) with Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), its Head of Investment & Products Brian Chan told CoinDesk on Wednesday.
The statement from the SFC and HKMA comes as expectations mount the U.S. SEC is on the verge of approving a spot bitcoin ETF.