In 2021, Coinbase went public on NASDAQ, with its market value briefly surpassing $85 billion, marking a significant event in the traditional capital market's acceptance of the crypto world. Three years later, on the other side of the ocean, the Asian compliant digital asset platform HashKey has officially submitted its listing application to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. As the bells of Wall Street and the gongs of Victoria Harbour gaze across the sea at each other, a dialogue about the future of digital finance between the East and West is unfolding.

Gazing Across the Sea, Sharing the Core

Essentially, HashKey and Coinbase play the same role: both are key bridges connecting the traditional financial world with the new crypto frontier. They have chosen the seemingly most difficult yet most sustainable path—compliance-based operations.

Coinbase spent eight years negotiating with U.S. regulators to ultimately gain mainstream recognition; HashKey, from its inception, has embedded compliance into its DNA, obtaining comprehensive licenses in multiple jurisdictions including Hong Kong, Singapore, and Bermuda. They both understand one principle: in the highly regulated field of finance, compliance is not a limitation but a passport to mainstream acceptance. While many platforms still navigate the gray areas, these two companies have already built safe and compliant entry channels for institutional funds.

The prospectus shows that HashKey's platform assets are nearing HKD 20 billion, with institutional clients dominating. This is strikingly similar to Coinbase's early development path—first winning the trust of the most cautious institutional investors, then expanding into a broader market. They both address the same core issue: how to allow traditional capital to enter the crypto world safely and legally.

The "Coming of Age" Ceremony for Hong Kong's Crypto Market

The moment HashKey is racing towards its IPO coincides with the harvest period of Hong Kong's virtual asset policies. This is no coincidence but a necessity—corporate maturity and market maturity occur simultaneously, completing a solemn "coming of age" ceremony.

In recent years, Hong Kong's regulatory framework for virtual assets has evolved from non-existence to maturity. The release of the "Policy Declaration on the Development of Virtual Assets" in 2022 and the formal implementation of the licensing system in 2023 have laid a clear regulatory foundation for the market. HashKey has grown into a benchmark enterprise in such a regulatory environment.

Unlike the U.S. market where Coinbase operates, Hong Kong follows a "rules-first" approach. In the U.S., innovation often leads, followed by regulation; in Hong Kong, the regulatory framework is established first, guiding the market to innovate within the rules. Both models have their pros and cons but point towards the same goal: to unleash innovative vitality under the premise of controllable risk.

HashKey's business layout also reflects innovative exploration within this regulatory framework. From trading to custody, from staking services to asset management, and to the self-developed HashKey Chain, it is building a complete digital asset ecosystem. This is not only a commercial expansion but also a comprehensive validation of Hong Kong's virtual asset service capabilities.

From Wilderness to Order

Looking back at the development of the crypto industry, we have witnessed a transformation from wilderness to order. Coinbase's IPO proved that crypto enterprises can meet the scale requirements of traditional capital markets, while HashKey's listing process demonstrates that a world-class digital asset platform can also be nurtured in the Eastern financial center.

Hong Kong's unique advantage lies in its geographical position, backed by mainland China and facing the global market, along with its deep-rooted rule of law tradition and international financial experience. When global capital seeks entry into the Asian crypto market, Hong Kong offers a solution that combines international standards with Chinese understanding.

If HashKey successfully goes public, its significance will transcend the capitalization process of a single company. It will showcase to the world that beyond the Western-dominated crypto narrative, there exists another successful path—a road that combines Eastern regulatory wisdom with global financial innovation.

The capital market journeys of the two major crypto trading platforms from the East and West may seem parallel, but they resonate with each other. Together, they prove a trend: crypto finance is moving from the margins to the center, from chaos to regulation. As Coinbase validates scale on NASDAQ and HashKey verifies its path on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, we see a global industry blooming in different market soils, yet sharing the same roots.

Hong Kong's crypto story may just be beginning. But this chapter has already sketched out the self-reform of an international financial center in the digital age. As tradition and modernity merge here, and as Eastern wisdom collides with global innovation, Hong Kong is quietly completing its critical leap from an international financial center to an international digital financial center.

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