In a landmark move, Hong Kong has granted its first two stablecoin issuer licenses to HSBC and Anchorpoint Financial, a joint venture led by Standard Chartered that includes Animoca Brands. This decision, made by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), is the first batch of approvals under the Stablecoins Ordinance, which took effect in August 2025. According to HKMA chief executive Eddie Yue, the authority looks forward to the issuers launching their businesses, exploring growth opportunities while managing risks.
The introduction of regulated stablecoins is expected to address 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 assessed 36 applications before making its decision, prioritizing risk management, reserve quality, and anti-money-laundering controls. By licensing note-issuing banks first, the regulator appears to be taking a deliberate approach. The decision to license HSBC and Standard Chartered, two of only three commercial banks authorized to print Hong Kong dollar banknotes, reflects the territory's historical banking system.
Today, each note-issuing bank deposits U.S. dollars with the government's Exchange Fund and receives Certificates of Indebtedness in return, which are used to back the printing of banknotes. In a blog post, Yue drew parallels between pre-1935 banknotes issued by commercial banks and stablecoins, highlighting their role as a medium of exchange. The licenses come with strict Know-Your-Customer (KYC) requirements, with licensed stablecoins only transferable to wallets whose owners have been identity-verified.
This framework is one of the strictest in the world, with the travel rule applying to transfers above HK$8,000. 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. 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 was weak.
Instead, stablecoins have become a key focus, with Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters suggesting that they could lay the foundation for a new era of digital trade settlement. However, it remains to be seen whether the market will agree, given that 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 the question is whether a non-dollar stablecoin can build the necessary network effects to compete.