Hong Kong to issue first batch of stablecoin licenses in Q1, finance chief says

Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan announced at the World Economic Forum in Davos that the city plans to grant the first batch of stablecoin issuer licenses in the first quarter of this year, reinforcing its commitment to becoming a crypto hub with a responsible and sustainable framework. This stablecoin licensing regime, passed in 2025, mandates strict standards for fiat-referenced stablecoin issuers regarding reserves, redemption, and risk management. This initiative complements existing efforts, including a licensing regime for crypto trading platforms (which has approved 11 firms like OSL and HashKey) and ongoing tokenization pilots under Project Ensemble. However, industry groups have voiced concerns that proposed stricter licensing for crypto asset dealing and management services might increase compliance costs and slow institutional adoption.

(Source：The Block)