Hong Kong’s stablecoin licensing regime, set to begin on August 1, is drawing significant interest from the region’s financial and tech heavyweights, with local media in China reporting that over 40 applications have been received.
But expectations are being tempered by the reality that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is likely to approve only a single-digit number of licenses, according to reports, making this one of the most competitive regulatory races in the city’s digital finance history.
Despite the rush of interest, only three firms have been admitted to the HKMA’s stablecoin sandbox so far, including a joint venture between Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands.
According to an HKMA fact sheet, the sandbox was created to allow companies with a genuine and well-developed plan for issuing fiat-referenced stablecoins to engage with regulators, refine compliance models, and offer feedback on proposed rules.
Admission is not an endorsement or guarantee of licensing and sandbox participants will still need to apply formally once the full regime is live. However, the limited number of firms accepted into this testing phase offers an early look at how narrow the approval funnel may be.
Most of the firms preparing to apply are among China’s largest banks, payment processors, and internet companies, according to reports.
Standard Chartered’s joint venture, JD.com’s blockchain division, and Ant Group’s digital finance units are all expected to be contenders, with Standard Chartered and JD already sandbox participants.
The HKMA’s cautious approach seems to be consistent with how the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has handled virtual asset platforms, granting just 11 licenses so far.
During the SFC licensing process for virtual asset platforms, a number of high-profile contenders withdrew their applications, and reports at the time indicated that the regulator discovered “unsatisfactory practices” at some exchanges.
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