HashKey Exchange Debuts Retail Crypto Trading in Hong Kong

Crypto Trading in Hong Kong Expands to Retail Investors

Hong Kong is opening up cryptocurrency trading to individual investors, with at least one exchange receiving regulatory approval to offer such services.

Digital asset firm HashKey has been granted the necessary licenses to expand its business from professional investors to include retail users.

HashKey has upgraded two major licenses issued by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC): Type 1, which allows the firm to operate a virtual asset trading platform under Hong Kong’s securities laws, and Type 7, which enables the firm to provide automated trading services to both institutional and retail users.

HashKey Brokerage Launches Crypto OTC Trading Service

HashKey has become one of the first licensed exchanges to offer retail crypto trading in Hong Kong and has officially launched its crypto over-the-counter (OTC) trading service, HashKey Brokerage. The platform is compliant with local securities laws following the adoption of the new crypto regulatory framework by the SFC.

Livio Weng, Chief Operating Officer of HashKey Group, expressed confidence in the establishment of licensed trading platforms and the further clarity of regulatory frameworks in Hong Kong. He stated:

The news follows an executive at Hang Seng Bank, who argued that crypto companies can open bank accounts only after obtaining the approval-in-principle (AIP) license from the Hong Kong SFC. By early August, OSL and Hashkey were reportedly the only exchanges to have received such approval.