Hong Kong's ETF Market Sees Significant Growth Amid Regulatory Developments

According to Odaily, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has released its quarterly report, highlighting substantial growth in the region's ETF market. The report indicates a 34% year-on-year increase in the total market value of ETFs, with a net capital inflow of HKD 6.3 billion during the quarter. Additionally, assets managed by funds registered in Hong Kong rose by 29.5% year-on-year to HKD 1.67 trillion, with a net inflow of approximately HKD 34 billion recorded in the same period. The number of licensed asset management companies increased by 24% year-on-year, while the number of open-ended fund companies surged by 132.6%. The SFC also noted a rise in license applications from institutions and individuals, with year-on-year increases of 56% and 23%, respectively. The commission is currently reviewing license applications from 15 virtual asset trading platforms, with 11 considered likely to receive licenses. It is anticipated that several of these platforms will be licensed within the year through an expedited process. Since the launch of Asia's first virtual asset spot ETFs in April, listed in Hong Kong, their market value has increased by over 70%, and the average daily trading volume has doubled by the end of November. In August, the Ensemble project sandbox was officially launched. Concurrently, the SFC, in collaboration with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), is spearheading tokenization initiatives to establish and expand the tokenization market in Hong Kong. Furthermore, the SFC is conducting on-site inspections of several virtual asset trading platforms considered for licensing, focusing on their client asset protection measures, 'know your customer' processes, and cybersecurity requirements. During the quarter, the SFC added ten entities to its list of suspicious virtual asset trading platforms, warning the public about potential fraud and unlicensed activities related to virtual assets, as well as a suspicious investment product.