Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated that the one-year transition period for the Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) licensing regime in Hong Kong is coming to an end. All Hong Kong VASPs must submit their license applications by February 29th, 2024, or else they will have to cease operations in Hong Kong.
(Source: Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission)
Background Information:
Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission: Exchanges without licenses “must cease operations”, application list does not include Huobi, Bybit, OKEx, etc.
On June 1st, 2023, the Hong Kong government officially opened the application for Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) licenses. In late September, they began disclosing the relevant lists of licensed platforms, platforms that have applied for licenses, and platforms that have ceased operations.
Hong Kong Financial Secretary: VASPs must submit applications before 2/29
According to a report by the Finance Association, Hong Kong Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated on February 2nd that the one-year transition period for the VASP licensing regime in Hong Kong is coming to an end. All Hong Kong VASPs must submit their license applications by February 29th, 2024.
It is understood that the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission previously stated that the period from June 1st, 2023, to May 31st, 2024, is the transition period for license applications. If the commission considers the existing virtual asset trading platforms to meet the conditions for being granted licenses (applications must be submitted by February 29th, 2024), these platforms will be automatically regarded as licensed starting from June 1st, 2024, until their license applications are approved, withdrawn, or rejected.
(Source: Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission)
The current status of VASP license applications in Hong Kong (2 approved, 14 under review)
According to the Securities and Futures Commission’s data, the virtual asset trading platforms that have officially been granted licenses are HashKey Exchange and OSL Exchange.
In order to enhance investment security, the commission requires both platforms to conduct due diligence investigations before listing virtual assets for trading, ensuring that the assets meet token inclusion criteria, and seek approval from the commission. They are also required to disclose sufficient information to investors.
There are currently 14 companies awaiting VASP license review, including OKEx, Bybit, PantherTrade, BGE, HKbitEX, HKVAX, VDX, Meex, etc.
It is worth mentioning that, apart from Bitget, an exchange that previously stated it would not apply for a Hong Kong license, well-known platforms such as Binance, Huobi, and Gate.io, which were rumored to take action, have not appeared on the commission’s list.
Further reading:
Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission exposes over 10 crypto companies that claimed to “apply for licenses” but did not follow through, including Binance, OKEx, and Huobi.
(Source: Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission)
(Image Source: Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission)
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