In a landmark move, Hong Kong has issued its first stablecoin licenses to HSBC and Anchorpoint Financial, a joint venture led by Standard Chartered, which also includes Animoca Brands. This development follows the implementation of the Stablecoins Ordinance 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 commencing operations, exploring growth opportunities while managing risks effectively. Yue expressed hopes that the promotion of regulated stablecoins would 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 and prioritized risk management, reserve quality, and anti-money-laundering controls. The decision to license note-issuing banks first appears to be a deliberate move, with HSBC and Standard Chartered being two of the three authorized commercial banks to print Hong Kong dollar banknotes.
The licenses are subject to 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 been identity-verified. This strict regime may lead to HKD stablecoins embedding compliance checks into their smart contracts, restricting transfers to wallets listed in an on-chain white list. The bank-led stablecoin model reflects the HKMA's decision to deprioritize its central bank digital currency for retail use. Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters believes that Hong Kong's push into stablecoins and tokenized deposits 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.