Regulators in Hong Kong have only allowed a small number of cryptocurrency exchanges to provide retail trading services thus far.
OKEx, a cryptocurrency exchange in Hong Kong, has reached the last hurdle before obtaining a VASP license. The cryptocurrency trading platform anticipates receiving its VASP license upon final approval in March 2024.
OKX is presently waiting for the organization to be awarded a license and begin operations, according to comments made by Li Zhikai, the company’s global chief commercial officer, in an interview. The cryptocurrency trading platform has begun pre-launch activities including technological integration.
In 2023, Hong Kong declared its support for cryptocurrency and introduced regulations to allow cryptocurrency exchanges to serve retail clients. Only a few crypto exchanges, like HashKey and OSL, have been granted permission to provide retail crypto trading services, despite the fact that over eighty crypto companies originally expressed interest in setting up shop there.
In an effort to reduce the danger associated with investing in new crypto currencies, the regulatory authority in the nation has allowed only Bitcoin trading for retail clients. Investors may only put away 30% of their after-tax income due to the rules in place.
HashKey, OSL, Huobi, and Gate.io are all waiting for the regulatory green light to launch retail crypto trading services. A previous Gate.io official had informed Cointelegraph that the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission had tighter regulations for virtual asset service providers than other authorities. Insurance and compensation arrangements are now mandatory for crypto platforms under regulatory mandate. Aside from that, crypto exchanges are required to keep 98% of assets in cold storage.
OKX was not immediately accessible for comment when Cointelegraph requested its thoughts on the Hong Kong retail market’s regulatory experience and aspirations.
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