The Zhitong Finance App learned that with regard to digital asset development policies, the Acting Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, Chan Ho-rim, said in response to lawmakers' questions that the authorities and industry are actively promoting various tasks to gradually transform the policy vision into real progress and market results. In terms of expanding the range of tokenized products, the Hong Kong Government has normalized the issuance of tokenized bonds and issued the fourth batch of digital green bonds in September this year, totaling about HK$20 billion, further improving the digital ecosystem and playing a leading role in the development of tokenized investment products.
By the end of September 2026, the Securities Regulatory Commission had approved 13 tokenized money market funds, 1 tokenized gold investment product, 2 gold ETFs (exchange traded funds) with tokenized shares, and 1 back-up subscription option ETF with tokenized shares. The tokenized share of these 17 retail investment products currently has an asset management scale of approximately HK$10.3 billion. With the approval of the Securities Regulatory Commission, two tokenized money market funds approved by the Securities Regulatory Commission also began round-the-clock secondary market trading on a licensed virtual asset trading platform on October 26.
In terms of optimizing laws and regulations, the authorities continue to clarify compliance paths to promote responsible innovation and steady market development while adhering to risk management and investor protection. Among them, the Hong Kong Government and the Securities Regulatory Commission will submit a bill to the Legislative Council at the end of this year to expand the current regulatory system applicable to virtual asset trading platforms by amending the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Ordinance (Chapter 615) to cover virtual asset transactions, advice, management and custodian services.
In order to promote market development, the Hong Kong Government and financial regulators adhere to the principle of “same business, same risk, same rules” and promote the steady development of virtual assets and tokenized investment products and related businesses in Hong Kong through risk-based and technology-neutral supervision methods. Relevant regulations are in line with traditional financial services and securities standards, and are appropriately adjusted to the characteristics of virtual assets and tokenized investment products to fully protect investors while promoting responsible innovation in the industry.
In terms of promoting application scenarios and cross-industry cooperation, with the implementation of the Stablecoin Ordinance (Chapter 656) in August last year, the HKMA granted two stablecoin issuer licenses in April this year. Related stablecoins have a wide range of application scenarios, covering cross-border payments, local payments, and tokenized asset transactions, serving different types of users. Stablecoins can improve transaction efficiency and reduce transaction costs in these application scenarios, thereby creating real value for the real economy.
The Hong Kong Government also supported Cyberport's launch of the “Blockchain and Digital Asset Pilot Funding Program” in June last year, successfully funding nine pilot projects covering areas such as real-world asset tokenization, payment and stablecoin infrastructure, security and risk management, and decentralized identity. As of June this year, the plan is to enable the tokenization of assets totaling HK$230 million, and six of these projects have already been put into commercial use. Seeing that the plan has brought substantial benefits to the market, the Hong Kong Government announced on November 2 that it supports Cyberport's re-launch of the plan, and began accepting applications on the same day.
Furthermore, the Hong Kong Government is also promoting the industry to explore the use of tokenized deposits in tokenized money market fund transactions to instantly manage liquidity and capital requirements through the EnsembleTX project, which is co-led by the Securities Regulatory Commission and the HKMA.
In terms of talent and partner development, the Hong Kong Government continues to promote talent training and development in the Web 3.0 industry, with a special focus on blockchain applications and digital asset innovation, while also focusing on attracting global digital asset professionals to Hong Kong. Among them, the Hong Kong Government is strongly funding Cyberport to support the development of the Web 3.0 ecosystem. Through cooperation with institutions, it provides physical and online courses, training camps, seed funding and internship opportunities, and establishes a “Web 3.0 Investor Network” to promote talent development, industry application and public awareness.
By the end of September 2026, the relevant activities had brought together more than 320 companies, and the relevant courses had received more than 7,000 participants, with remarkable results. In addition, digital asset and Web 3.0 professionals can settle in Hong Kong through various channels.
Chen Ho-lim also mentioned that the Hong Kong Government and the Securities Regulatory Commission attach great importance to the quality of licensed virtual asset trading platforms to properly manage risk and fully protect investors. International virtual asset trading platforms can apply for a license from the Securities Regulatory Commission as long as they meet the relevant legal requirements and the regulatory requirements of the Securities Regulatory Commission. The Securities Regulatory Commission and the Investment Promotion Department have also reached out to these international platforms to introduce Hong Kong's regulatory requirements and market opportunities.
In fact, in recent years, the Securities Regulatory Commission has gradually expanded the products and services that can be provided by licensed platforms, facilitate access to global liquidity, and allow the development of more digital assets and tokenized products with appropriate guarantees. As mentioned above, the Hong Kong Government and the Securities Regulatory Commission are also about to submit a bill to the Legislative Council to incorporate more types of virtual asset services into the regulatory system and promote more diverse international service providers to do business in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Government and the Securities Regulatory Commission will continue to enhance the competitiveness of the Hong Kong digital asset market through clear regulation, talent and infrastructure development, and international cooperation.