The Hong Kong "Stablecoin Regulation" officially came into effect on August 1, marking the beginning of the formal implementation phase of stablecoin regulation in the Hong Kong region. However, at this milestone moment, market expectations for the first batch of stablecoin licenses have subtly changed. According to Chinese media reports, sources close to applicants for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong indicate that as regulatory details are finalized, the enthusiasm for stablecoins in the region will wane, especially for non-financial institution applicants whose primary application scenario is cross-border payments. These applicants may actively choose to withdraw from early participation due to the difficulty of meeting the regulatory requirement to "verify the identity of every token holder." This suggests that early favorites such as internet platforms like JD.com and Ant Group may find it challenging to appear on the first batch of license lists.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) released the licensing framework for stablecoin issuers on July 29, clearly stating that the identities of initial compliant stablecoin holders in Hong Kong must be verified, implying a certain degree of real-name system.
"Verifying the identity of every token holder": Sources point out that for non-financial institution applicants whose primary application scenario is cross-border payments, meeting the regulatory requirement to "verify the identity of every token holder" may be an insurmountable high threshold. This could lead some previously popular internet platforms to voluntarily withdraw from early participation.
Limited number of licenses: HKMA officials have repeatedly emphasized that they expect to issue only a single-digit number of licenses in the first batch, and the first batch of stablecoin issuer licenses in Hong Kong is expected to be issued in early 2026, with the overall pace of progress slightly slower than market expectations.
Strict regulatory standards: Zou Chuanwei, director of the Jiangsu Institute of Digital and Financial Technology, stated, "The regulatory standards are stricter than the market expected, the licensing timeline is later than the market expected, and the number of licenses is fewer than the market expected, so the stock prices of stablecoin concept stocks naturally need to adjust."
On the first day of the Hong Kong "Stablecoin Regulation" coming into effect, the capital market, which had been bustling for nearly two months, cooled down. Data from Wind shows that on August 1, both A-shares and Hong Kong stocks related to stablecoin concepts collectively fell.
Stock performance: Hong Kong's Yau Choy Securities fell nearly 20%, Yunfeng Financial dropped over 15%, OKLink, Lianlian Digital, Guotai Junan International, and OSL Group fell over 10%; A-share Sifang Jingchuang fell over 5%.
Market expectation adjustment: Zheng Lei, chief economist of Samoyed Cloud Technology Group, stated that the HKMA's attitude indicates that it will prioritize safety and stability in the early stages of licensing, which may mean that certain popular institutions expected by the market will miss out on the first batch of licenses.
In light of the changes in the licensing pace, who will be the first to obtain licenses? CITIC Securities released a research report suggesting continued attention to issuers likely to obtain the first batch of scarce licenses and platforms that are deterministically involved in the creation of stablecoin use scenarios.
Advantages of issuing banks: Industry insiders indicate that Bank of China (Hong Kong) is one of the three major issuing banks in Hong Kong. If it issues stablecoins, it has inherent advantages and can also reassure regulators in both regions. CITIC Group, through its Hong Kong subsidiary Xinyin International, has partnered with several institutions to apply for the first batch of stablecoin licenses.
Sandbox testing institutions: The HKMA's stablecoin issuer sandbox includes JD Group, Standard Chartered Bank, and Yuanbi Technology, as well as Bank of China (Hong Kong) and Ant Group, which are not in the sandbox but are hotly discussed as potential first batch license recipients.
Ant Group: Its two major business segments, Ant International and Ant Digital Technology, have announced plans to apply for stablecoin issuer licenses in Hong Kong. Industry insiders analyze that Ant Group has a solid foundation in cross-border payments, RWA, and blockchain technology, as well as anti-money laundering, making it highly likely to obtain a license in the first batch.
JD.com: Chairman Liu Qiangdong expressed the hope to apply for stablecoin licenses in all major currency countries and regions globally. JD's stablecoin has entered the second phase of sandbox testing, with testing scenarios mainly including cross-border payments, investment transactions, and retail payments.
Yuanbi Technology: CEO Liu Yu stated that they intend to issue a Hong Kong dollar stablecoin (HKDR) on the Ethereum public chain.
Standard Chartered Bank: Standard Chartered Hong Kong and Greater China and North Asia CEO Mary Huen stated that the company is studying the HKMA's latest stablecoin regulatory documents and aims to submit an application as soon as possible after the "Stablecoin Regulation" comes into effect.
The HKMA has particularly emphasized anti-money laundering regulatory requirements. HKMA Assistant President Chen Jinghong stated that the requirement to verify the identity of every compliant stablecoin holder in Hong Kong is stricter than previously outlined in the regulatory agency's anti-money laundering consultation documents.
BIS warning: The Bank for International Settlements (BIS) has issued a strong warning regarding stablecoins, believing they have significant integrity flaws, primarily indicating that "stablecoins have become the preferred choice for illegal use to bypass integrity protection measures," which mainly points to the challenges they pose for anti-money laundering.
Concept stock adjustment: In response to the enthusiasm in the capital market, Yu Weimin has twice published articles to "cool down" stablecoins, pointing out that the current discussions surrounding stablecoins are overly conceptualized and show signs of bubble trends. He stated that he does not expect licenses to be issued within the year, which greatly differs from the market's earlier prediction that stablecoins would rapidly advance starting in August.
HKMA President Yu Weimin published an article titled "Hong Kong Wealth Management Market: Opportunities and Prospects." The article mentions that Hong Kong banks are experiencing rapid growth in digital asset business development. As of mid-July 2025, 22 banks have been authorized to sell digital asset-related products, 13 banks have been authorized to sell tokenized securities, and five banks have been authorized to provide digital asset custody services.
RWA development: Hong Kong's first RWA registration platform will go live on August 7, initiated by the Hong Kong Web 3.0 Standardization Association, which will connect the entire service system for the digitization, assetization, and financialization of RWA assets.
The formal implementation of the Hong Kong "Stablecoin Regulation" marks a solid step forward in the regulation of virtual assets in Hong Kong. However, the strict enforcement of regulatory details, particularly the KYC real-name system requirements, may lead to early favorites among non-financial institutions like JD.com and Ant Group missing out on the first batch of licenses. Traditional financial institutions, especially issuing banks, are expected to gain an advantage in the competition for the first batch of licenses due to their strengths in compliance and risk control. Hong Kong's robust development strategy aims to ensure that digital finance operates under the rule of law, setting a new benchmark for the global virtual asset market.
Related reading: The battle for stablecoin licenses in Hong Kong: Bank of China, Standard Chartered, and other issuing banks vie for the first licenses; who will be the first to get approved?
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