Hong Kong conditionally approves first bitcoin and ether ETFs

Hong Kong conditionally approves first bitcoin and ether ETFs

Hong Kong's securities regulator granted conditional approval for city's first spot-bitcoin and ether exchange traded funds
Hong Kong's securities regulator granted conditional approval for city's first spot-bitcoin and ether exchange traded funds. Photo: Peter PARKS / AFP
Source: AFP

Hong Kong's securities regulator on Monday granted conditional approval to start the city's first spot-bitcoin and ether exchange-traded funds (ETFs), firms involved said, positioning it as a leader in Asia for the use of cryptocurrencies as investment tools.

ChinaAMC (HK), the city's unit of China Asset Management, said in a statement it had received regulatory approval from Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) for the provision of virtual asset management services.

The company is "actively deploying resources in the development of spot Bitcoin ETF and spot Ethereum ETF", it said.

This will be done in partnership with BOCI-Prudential Trustee Limited, a joint venture of the fund management arm of Bank of China (HK) and the British multinational insurance firm.

Two other fund managers -- the Hong Kong units of Harvest Fund Management and Bosera Asset Management -- also said they had received conditional approvals from the SFC, Bloomberg reported.

Read also

US to grant Samsung up to $6.4 bn for chip plants

The SFC declined to comment on individual applications.

OSL Digital Securities will provide custody services to China AMC and Harvest to ensure trading safety, the licensed digital assets platform announced Monday.

"This collaboration marks a critical advancement in the financial landscape of the region, heralding a new chapter in digital asset investments," OSL said in a statement.

Hong Kong has been trying to edge ahead as a regional digital asset hub as its international financial centre status has been dented by political turmoil in recent years and China's economic downturn.

The latest move came three months after the United States gave the green light to ETFs pegged to bitcoin's spot price, making it easier for mainstream investors to add the unit to their portfolio.

Hong Kong is also widely considered an experimental field for including cryptocurrencies as mainstream investment tools -- which are banned in mainland China.

Read also

OpenAI comes to Asia with new office in Tokyo

"The financial hub is looking to establish itself as a competitor in the space competing with Dubai and Singapore as regulators open up crypto markets to institutional demand," said James Harte, an analyst from Tickmill.

He added that Bitcoin futures were down "around 7 percent at the lows of the day before sentiment reversed on" Hong Kong's news.

Last December, the city's SFC said it was ready to allow retail investors to buy funds that are 100 percent invested in some of the digital assets, triggering the first wave of applications from fund managers.

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.