The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), which serves as the region’s central bank and regulator, has reportedly put pressure on major banks including HSBC and Standard Chartered to accept crypto exchanges as clients.
According to a June 15 report from the Financial Times, which cited three sources familiar with the matter, the HKMA questioned the UK-based firms as well as the Bank of China in a May meeting — asking the institutions why they weren’t taking on cryptocurrency exchanges as clients.
Less than a month before on April 27, the HKMA issued a circular to banking institutions urging them to pay attention to new market developments and encouraging them to adopt a more ambitious approach to new sectors such as the crypto market.
In the document, Hong Kong’s central bank specifically required the institutions to help crypto firms, which it calls “virtual asset service providers” (VASPs), in gaining access to banking services.
According to a source familiar with the content’s of last month’s meeting, the HKMA “encouraged the banks to not be afraid.” The source added that there is opposition to taking on crypto clients.
“We are seeing some resistance from senior executives at traditional banks,” they said.
Cointelegraph contacted the HKMA, HSBC and Standard Chartered for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
Hong Kong’s pro-crypto pressure comes amid a turbulent regulatory environment for exchanges in the United States.
On June 5, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance for violating domestic securities laws. The next day on June 6, the SEC sued Coinbase on similar allegations.
In a June 12 filing, Binance.US claimed that the SEC’s lawsuit was placing significant pressure on its relationships with its banking partners in the U.S. Additionally, Binance Australia was recently forced to shut down all AUD services including withdrawals and deposits after its banking ties were severed by local payments provider Zepto.
Related: Hong Kong’s regulatory lead sets it up to be major crypto hub
Meanwhile, some lawmakers from Hong Kong appear more welcoming of crypto firms.
On June 10, Hong Kong Legislative Council member Johnny Ng expressed his support for embattled crypto firm Coinbase on Twitter and went as far as inviting it to establish operations on more friendly ground.
I hereby offer an invitation to welcome all global virtual asset trading operators including @coinbase to come to HK for application of official trading platforms and further development plans. Please feel free to approach me and I am happy to provide any assistance. pic.twitter.com/bcIi1IjMlc
— Johnny Ng 吴杰庄 (@Johnny_nkc) June 10, 2023
On June 1, Hong Kong enacted a new suite of crypto regulations that allowed for locally-licensed crypto firms to begin operations. From this point onwards, any firm with a valid license can service retail investors, allowing them to trade cryptocurrencies including Bitcoin (BTC) and Ether (ETH).
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