Public stablecoin adoption a top priority in Hong Kong with new digital asset blueprint
The Hong Kong government has pledged to promote the public adoption of licensed stablecoins, unveiling a broad set of new digital asset (DA) policies as the city seeks to cement its role as a global cryptocurrency hub while serving as a test bed for Beijing's fintech aspirations.
In the 'Policy Statement 2.0 on the Development of Digital Assets in Hong Kong' released on Thursday, the government called for market proposals to test stablecoin applications in public scenarios and a legislative proposal to expand tax concessions on profits from blockchain assets.
The blueprint set a 'vision for digital asset development and showcases the practical use of tokenisation through application, with a view to boosting the diversification of use cases', said Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po.
Starting from the 2025-26 financial year, privately offered funds and family-owned investment holding vehicles could claim tax breaks on profits from transactions involving cryptocurrencies and tokenised securities – bringing digital assets into parity with traditional assets such as stocks and bonds – pending approval by the Legislative Council.
Under the plan, the government would support testing new stablecoin use cases given the strong corporate interest, especially in cross-border trade and settlement, according to the document. The government-backed start-up incubator Cyberport would also launch a new funding scheme to support high-impact blockchain and digital asset projects.
The government said that regulators, law enforcement agencies and technology providers would collaborate to develop digital asset infrastructure.
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