Hong Kong just wrote itself into crypto history. This morning, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority granted the city’s first stablecoin issuer licences and the two recipients are the same banks that have printed Hong Kong’s banknotes since 1846.
The licences, effective today, were awarded to The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited – HSBC – and Anchorpoint Financial Limited, a joint venture led by Standard Chartered that also includes Animoca Brands and Hong Kong Telecommunications.
The HKMA assessed 36 applications before issuing this first batch.
Why HSBC and Standard Chartered and Why It Matters
The choice is deliberate and deeply symbolic. HSBC and Standard Chartered are two of only three commercial banks authorised to issue Hong Kong dollar banknotes, a privilege dating back to 1846. The HKMA is handing the digital money supply to the same institutions that manage the physical one.
HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue called it “an important milestone for the development of digital assets in Hong Kong,” adding that he hoped the licensees would “address pain points in financial and economic activities” for both individuals and businesses.
The Stablecoins Ordinance took effect in August 2025. Hong Kong missed its own March 2026 target to issue the first licences. Today’s announcement is the delivery, and both licences take immediate effect.
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What Comes Next
Neither institution is launching immediately. According to the HKMA, both licensees intend to “complete the necessary preparation work and launch business in the coming few months.” Both will issue stablecoins pegged to the Hong Kong dollar.
Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters has previously described Hong Kong’s stablecoin push as potentially laying “the foundation for a new era of digital trade settlement.”
The Bigger Picture
This is not just a regulatory milestone. It is Hong Kong placing itself at the centre of Asia’s digital asset infrastructure at a moment when the global stablecoin market has grown beyond $310 billion – with Citi projecting it could grow to between $1.9 trillion and $4 trillion.
Dollar-denominated tokens dominate almost all of it today. Hong Kong is betting that regulated, bank-issued HKD stablecoins can carve out a meaningful role in regional trade settlement.
The same institutions that have managed the city’s monetary system for over 170 years will now test whether that history translates into digital trust.
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