Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) officially announced the application for stablecoin Anchorpoint

Recently, Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) said in a statement that it has established a joint venture, Anchorpoint Financial Limited (Anchorpoint), with Web3 company Animoca Brands and Hong Kong Telecom (HKT), aiming to establish a business model focused on "issuing and promoting regulated stablecoins."

Anmi Group also issued a press release today, stating that on the same day (August 1) that the Stablecoin Ordinance was promulgated, it expressed its formal intention to apply to the Hong Kong Monetary Authority for a license to issue stablecoins.

It is reported that Anchorpoint is a joint venture established by Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong), Animoca Brands, and Hong Kong Telecom (HKT). The three companies first announced their plan to prepare a joint venture in February this year. After half a year of preparation, Standard Chartered Hong Kong and Animoca Brands issued an announcement on the same day on August 8 that the entity used to apply for a stablecoin license was officially named Anchorpoint, aiming to establish a business model that focuses on issuing compliant stablecoins.

It is worth noting that Anchorpoint changed its name three times during the preparation period. It is understood that Anchorpoint Financial Limited is currently shown as "registered" in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government Companies Registry, and its category is a private company limited by shares. According to information, Anchorpoint was established on January 24, 2025, and has undergone three name changes, namely: CENTURY LEADER LIMITED (effective on January 24), ArchBridge Financial Limited (effective on May 23), Anchorpoint Financial Limited (effective July 29).

This means that as early as February of this year when the three companies officially announced the plan to establish a joint venture, the company had already completed the registration, or it may not have been officially announced because the official name has not been decided.

The literal translation of the above three names into Chinese is "Century Leader Co., Ltd.", "Arch Bridge Financial Co., Ltd." and "Anchor Financial Co., Ltd.". The final name Anchorpoint may imply the characteristic of stablecoins anchored to fiat currencies.

As of August 8, Anchorpoint has not yet established an official website. As of the three applicants for the HKMA's sandbox, JD.com Group's subsidiary JD Coin Chain Technology and Yuanbi Technology's subsidiary Yuanbi Innovation Technology have made a preliminary introduction to the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin on their official websites.

Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong), Anmi Group and Hong Kong Telecom participated in the "Sandbox" for stablecoin issuers launched by the HKMA in July last year. ", exploring how stablecoins can integrate Web3 and traditional finance, and how they can play a role in the development of financial and payment markets.

Standard Chartered CEO of Hong Kong and Greater China and North Asia, Xuān Huiyi, expressed her pleasure at establishing Anchorpoint with her partners, Anchorpoint Group and HKT. She also hopes to bring an innovative, efficient, and secure transaction medium to Hong Kong, further promoting transaction convenience and enhancing the widespread adoption of digital assets. She and the company will strongly support Hong Kong's status as an international financial center and digital asset center.

Anchorpoint Group President, Ouyang Qijun, stated that stablecoins are one of the most attractive use cases in Web3, and that their adoption is still in its early stages, both at the institutional and retail levels. As assets continue to be "on-chain," stablecoins regulated by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority will help consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international financial center.