Hong Kong Sets Sights on Crypto Licensing Bill with Advanced Tokenized Finance Plans

The Hong Kong government is planning to introduce legislation for digital-asset trading and custody services by early 2027. The plan includes licensing for virtual-asset dealing, custody, advisory, and management services, which will expand beyond the existing regime for virtual-asset trading platforms.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is also preparing new services for the Central Moneymarkets Unit (CMU), its debt securities settlement infrastructure. The CMU will support round-the-clock, real-time on-chain settlement and work with e-HKD and central bank digital currencies.

HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue said that the authority will study whether the platform can settle tokenized deposits and regulated stablecoins.