Hong Kong Roll-Out Proposed Laws for Crypto Trading Platforms

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is making public consultation on crypto licensing rules to allow regulated cryptocurrency exchanges to enter the country and serve retail investors.

On Feb. 20, SFC reported that it is seeking public feedback and contributions on its newly proposed licensing regime that will regulate cryptocurrency trading platforms, which is slated to commence by June 2023. 

Recall that several retail investors have been victims of circumstances following the indiscriminate collapse of the FTX exchange. 

However, the new SFC proposed rules will mandate all cryptocurrency trading platforms willing to operate in Hong Kong to be registered and licensed by the regulatory body. 

It was reported that the proposed regulatory guidelines are in line with the extant requirements for licensed securities brokers and automated trading venues. 

The SFC CEO Julia Leung remarked on the importance of the proposed regulatory guidelines. According to her:

“As has been our philosophy since 2018, our proposed requirements for virtual asset trading platforms include robust measures to protect investors, following the ‘same business, same risks, same rules’ principle.”

Is the Next Crypto Bull Run Truly Coming from Asia?

While skepticism has been brewing around the Feb. 19 statements by the Gemini cofounder Cameron Winklevoss that the next crypto bull run will come from Asia with America embracing it or being left behind, the decision by Hong kong seems to validate the claim. 

My working thesis atm is that the next bull run is going to start in the East. It will be a humbling reminder that crypto is a global asset class and that the West, really the US, always only ever had two options: embrace it or be left behind. It can't be stopped. That we know.

— Cameron Winklevoss (@cameron) February 19, 2023

Winklevoss asserted that any government that doesn’t offer clear-cut rules and sincere guidance will be left in the lurch. This implies missing out on the greatest period of growth since the rise of the commercial internet. 

Any government that doesn't offer clear rules and sincere guidance will be left in the dust. Quickly. This will mean missing out on the greatest period of growth since the rise of the commercial Internet.

— Cameron Winklevoss (@cameron) February 19, 2023

It would be recalled that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been on a rampage, clamping down on several exchanges. On Feb. 10, it shut down the Kraken exchange crypto staking program.