In a groundbreaking move, Hong Kong has issued its inaugural stablecoin licenses to two prominent financial institutions: HSBC and Anchorpoint Financial, a joint venture led by Standard Chartered that also includes Animoca Brands. This development was announced on Friday and marks the first batch of approvals under the Stablecoins Ordinance, which took effect in August 2025. According to Eddie Yue, chief executive of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), the regulator is looking forward to the licensed issuers launching their businesses, exploring growth opportunities while effectively managing risks.
The HKMA chief executive expressed hopes that the promotion of regulated stablecoins will address existing pain points in financial and economic activities, create value for individuals and businesses, and support the healthy development of digital assets in Hong Kong. The HKMA evaluated 36 applications before granting the licenses, prioritizing risk management, reserve quality, and anti-money-laundering controls. The decision to license note-issuing banks first appears to be a deliberate move, as HSBC and Standard Chartered are two of the three commercial banks authorized to print Hong Kong dollar banknotes. The licenses come with one of the world's strictest know-your-customer (KYC) frameworks for digital money, requiring licensed stablecoins to be transferred only to wallets whose owners have undergone identity verification.
The travel rule applies to transfers exceeding HK$8,000 (~$1,000). In practice, this means that HKD stablecoins will likely embed compliance checks into their smart contracts, restricting transfers to wallets listed in an on-chain white list.
This approach makes them structurally different from freely transferable tokens like USDT or USDC. The bank-led stablecoin model also reflects the HKMA's decision to deprioritize its central bank digital currency for retail use, following an 11-group pilot program that found the retail case to be weak. Instead, stablecoins have become a major focus, with Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters suggesting that Hong Kong's push into stablecoins and tokenized deposits could lay the foundation for a new era of digital trade settlement.
Whether the market will respond positively remains to be seen, as stablecoins are a roughly $310 billion asset class dominated by USD-denominated tokens. Hong Kong is betting that regulated, bank-issued HKD stablecoins can carve out a role in regional trade settlement, but it is uncertain whether a non-dollar stablecoin can build the necessary network effects to compete.