Hong Kong's Digital Asset Regulation Requires More Time, Says SFC Member

According to BlockBeats, Eric Yip, a member of the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) Executive Committee, stated at the Finternet 2025 Asia Digital Asset Summit in Hong Kong that the city's regulatory legislation for digital assets needs more time to develop. He emphasized the importance of adapting legislation dynamically and listening to the vibrant market and industry to ensure that regulatory approaches remain up-to-date. The Hong Kong SFC is not the fastest or most aggressive regulatory body, currently adopting a prudent and consistent regulatory approach. In February, the SFC released a roadmap, which is currently 65% implemented, with hopes to reach 100% or even 110% by this time next year. On February 19, 2025, the Hong Kong SFC unveiled the "ASPIRe" roadmap at the Consensus Hong Kong 2025 forum. This roadmap aims to enhance the security, innovation, and growth of Hong Kong's virtual asset market through a five-pillar framework, promoting the sustainable development of the virtual asset ecosystem. It includes 12 key initiatives such as streamlining market access processes, strengthening protection mechanisms like custody and insurance regulations, expanding product offerings by considering virtual asset staking, derivatives trading, and margin lending, upgrading infrastructure like hot/cold wallet security management, and enhancing stakeholder relationship cooperation. SFC Chief Executive Officer Julia Leung highlighted that the core of this roadmap is to expand the services of virtual asset trading platforms (VATP) while ensuring compliance and investor protection, solidifying Hong Kong's position as a global liquidity hub for virtual assets.