Latest news with #EddieYue
South China Morning Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Hong Kong passes stablecoin law, clearing way for licensed issuers to sell to public
Hong Kong lawmakers passed a law on Wednesday that establishes a regulatory regime for stablecoins, paving the way for issuers to obtain licences and sell the digital assets to the public. A stablecoin is a type of cryptocurrency that is pegged to a specific reserve asset, such as the US dollar or any fiat currency. The Stablecoins Bill passed by the Legislative Council , which will take effect later this year, requires stablecoin issuers to obtain a licence from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) . It also aims to protect the general public and investors by allowing only licensees to advertise such assets. 'The ordinance has established a risk-based, pragmatic, and flexible regulatory regime,' Eddie Yue Wai-man, chief executive of the HKMA, said in a statement on Wednesday. A 'robust and fit-for-purpose regulatory environment' would support the 'healthy, responsible and sustainable development' of Hong Kong's ecosystem for stablecoins and digital assets more broadly, Yue said. Globally, stablecoin trading volume reached US$27.6 trillion in 2024, according to a report by cryptocurrency exchange operator surpassing the combined volume of Visa and Mastercard transactions over the same period. HKMA said it would soon conduct further consultations on details of the regime, such as reserve requirements, client asset segregation, risk management, disclosures and other issues.
RTHK
08-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Cross-border digital currency platform may debut soon
Cross-border digital currency platform may debut soon Eddie Yue told RTHK that the mBridge project may soon be launched if a trial run is smooth. Photo: RTHK The head of the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), Eddie Yue, said a new digital currency platform could soon be put in place if a trial run proves successful. The platform, called mBridge, aims to facilitate cross-border payments. It's jointly developed by the People's Bank of China and the central banks in Thailand, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, along with the HKMA. "The trial run this year is using real-life transactions for cross-border settlement. If it goes on smoothly, the platform will actually be ready for launch," Yue told RTHK's "Government and You" programme. He added that local officials have been working with their Middle Eastern counterparts in promoting linkages in equity and bond transactions.
South China Morning Post
07-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
What's in store for homebuyers as HKMA intervenes in currency market
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) intervened in the foreign exchange market over the past week to rein in the local dollar, spending a total of HK$129.4 billion to buy the equivalent US$16.7 billion worth of US currency amid an influx of capital. Advertisement Hong Kong has pegged its currency at HK$7.80 per dollar since October 1983 under the Linked Exchange Rate System, and allowed it to swing between HK$7.75 and HK$7.85 since 2005. It commits to sell Hong Kong dollars at the strong-side of the trading band, and to buy at the weak-side of the band. Here's why this is good for homebuyers and the broader economy in general. How can the interbank rates drop in the coming days? The four market interventions would raise the HKMA's aggregated balance – a component of the monetary base – to HK$174.1 billion or almost four times the level before last Friday. Advertisement 'The increased liquidity in the banking system will drive interbank rates lower and reduce the burden on mortgage borrowers or corporate borrowers who priced their loans against Hibor,' HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue Wai-man said, referring to Hong Kong interbank offered rates. 'This will benefit the economy and businesses as a whole.' The ratio of new mortgage loans priced with reference to Hibor stood at 91.3 per cent in December 2024, according to HKMA statistics.
RTHK
06-05-2025
- Business
- RTHK
Exchange Fund records HK$67.2b in investment income
Exchange Fund records HK$67.2b in investment income Eddie Yue says the Monetary Authority has been diversifying its investments in recent years to minimise risks. Photo: RTHK The Exchange Fund recorded an investment income of HK$67.2 billion in the first quarter, reversing a loss from the previous three months. The fund backing the local currency was boosted in part by rallies in local stocks in the January-March period, as investment interests surged over mainland stocks following AI firm DeepSeek's release of its cost-efficient AI models. The gains compared with an investment loss of HK$20.3 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024 and represented a 7.8 percent increase year on year. Announcing the Exchange Fund's performance on Tuesday, Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) chief executive Eddie Yue said the authorities have in recent years reduced the holdings of US dollar assets, diversifying the fund's investment portfolio. Speaking in a Legislative Council panel meeting, Yue said while the dominance of the greenback as a reserve currency will not change in the short term, the HKMA has been gradually diversifying its investments to minimise risks. "The investment portfolio is highly diversified, and it not only includes US dollar bonds or US dollar assets, but also many other assets," he said. "At the end of last year, our annual report showed that the holding of our US dollar assets stood at about 79 percent in our two investment portfolios, compared with more than 90 percent a few years ago. So we have gradually diversified our investment portfolio into non-US dollar assets, including renminbi, the euro, the Japanese yen, the British pound, etc." Looking ahead, Yue expects the Exchange Fund to face greater uncertainties for the rest of the year due to the tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump. Meanwhile, Yue said the Hong Kong dollar could strengthen further in the coming months due to high demand. He said the appreciation will depend on several factors, including upcoming IPO activities, stock dividends and reduced carry trade activities, an arbitrage whereby investors borrow low-yielding currencies to buy high-yielding currencies. The HKMA has intervened in the currency market in recent days to stop the Hong Kong dollar from breaching the upper end of its trading range. Yue said the city's currency market continues to operate in a smooth and orderly manner.
Business Times
06-05-2025
- Business
- Business Times
Hong Kong ramps up FX intervention to defend currency peg
[MELBOURNE] Hong Kong authorities ramped up sales of the local dollar as the greenback's slide threatened the foreign-exchange peg. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) sold a record HK$60.5 billion (S$10.1 billion) of the city's currency, according to an alert sent on its Bloomberg page on Tuesday (May 6) in Asia, after it tested the upper end of its trading band. That added to the HK$56.1 billion of sales versus the greenback since Friday. The rapid intervention signals efforts from the city's authorities to limit the currency's moves within its 7.75-to-7.85 per US dollar trading band. Asian currencies are clocking in unprecedented gains on hopes the world's two largest economies will reach a truce on trade and as doubts over US exceptionalism pummel the US dollar. Heavy sales of the local dollar by the HKMA helped dampen Hong Kong's borrowing rates that were elevated amid demand for the currency to subscribe shares of Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd, which is expected to be the city's biggest listing in years. Lower borrowing costs may also help support Hong Kong's economy in the face of US tariffs. The HKMA's Hong Kong dollar sales 'may help buffer potential liquidity tightness at an upcoming IPO, together with other inflows,' said Frances Cheung, head of FX and rates strategy at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. She sees the currency peg resulting in a relatively soft Hong Kong dollar compared with peers in times of greenback weakness. The Hong Kong dollar's exchange rate has been on a strengthening bias recently, mainly driven by an increase in market carry-trade activities and equity-related demand for Hong Kong dollars, HKMA chief executive Eddie Yue told lawmakers. The local financial market has operated in an orderly manner, he said. BT in your inbox Start and end each day with the latest news stories and analyses delivered straight to your inbox. Sign Up Sign Up Demand for Hong Kong dollars in the capital market has been high of late as Chinese investors poured money in Hong Kong stocks this year. Currency conversions related to dividend payments by Chinese companies listed in Hong Kong added to demand for the local currency. Before Friday, the last time the HKMA intervened to cap the currency's gains was in 2020. In comparison, it has stepped into the market in 2022 and 2023 to put a floor under the currency when it threatened to breach the weak end of its trading band. Hong Kong set up the currency peg in 1983 to arrest a plunge triggered by concern over talks to hand over the British colony to China. The trading band was widened in 2005 to what it currently is. The recent HKMA interventions are also expected to drive up its aggregate balance, a measure of interbank liquidity, providing more firepower to authorities to defend the currency in episodes of weakness. The gauge was hovering near the lowest level since 2008, after the HKMA sold US dollars to defend the peg. The accumulated intervention amount this time around is likely to overtake the HK$383.5 billion recorded in 2020 after the Covid outbreak, Bloomberg Intelligence strategist Stephen Chiu and Chunyu Zhang wrote in a note. The one-month Hong Kong Interbank Offered Rate fell to 3.66 per cent on Tuesday following HKMA's interventions, the lowest in two weeks. The recent rally in currencies of trade-dependent Asian economies is causing headaches for policymakers. While currency strength can help attract foreign inflows and make imports cheaper, it may hurt exporters by making their goods less competitive globally. The Taiwan dollar's surge by the most in four decades prompted the island's central bank to say on Monday that it would step into the foreign-exchange market if stability was threatened. As for the Hong Kong dollar, Citigroup expects HKMA interventions to continue. 'We expect further intervention on the strong side of the trading band given greenback weakness trend may have more room to run,' strategist Adrienne Lui wrote in a note. BLOOMBERG
