Review of the Current Status of 14 Licensed and Application-Submitted Virtual Asset Trading Platforms in Hong Kong
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Review of the Current Status of 14 Licensed and Application-Submitted Virtual Asset Trading Platforms in Hong Kong
OSL and Hashkey have long obtained compliance licenses, leading the pack with aggressive business expansion, followed by 12 institutions applying for licenses.
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsAuthor: Bowen, Bailu Salon
For Hong Kong's virtual asset market, the most significant development in 2023 was undoubtedly the implementation of the licensing regime for virtual asset trading platforms.
Whether Bitcoin or other virtual assets, trading remains their most critical application scenario. Global markets have consistently prioritized regulated exchanges as a key regulatory focus. Countries such as the United States, Canada, and South Korea have long established operational frameworks for compliant exchanges to regulate the development of virtual asset markets.
Hong Kong’s determination to become a global Web3.0 financial hub is beyond doubt. To quickly catch up with the pace of global markets, its top priority is launching compliant virtual asset trading platforms to provide fundamental safeguards.
In December 2022, Hong Kong’s Legislative Council passed the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Bill 2022. On June 1, 2023, the new licensing regime under the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance specifically designed for centralized virtual asset trading platforms (VATPs) officially came into effect. Hong Kong's virtual asset trading platforms have entered a new era of compliance.
OSL and Hashkey have already obtained compliance licenses and are leading the pack, aggressively expanding their businesses. Twelve other institutions have followed closely behind as license applicants, determined to claim their share of Hong Kong’s burgeoning virtual asset market.
This article from Bailu Salon provides readers with an analysis of OSL, Hashkey, and the 12 virtual asset license applicants, offering a comprehensive view of the competitive landscape among Hong Kong’s virtual asset trading platforms.
(I) OSL and Hashkey Lead the Licensed Pack
When discussing Hong Kong's compliant virtual asset trading platforms, it is impossible not to mention OSL and Hashkey. On August 3, 2023, both platforms announced on the same day that they had received approval from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to upgrade their licenses, enabling them to offer virtual asset trading services to retail clients. Compliant exchanges have officially entered the retail era.
OSL
OSL has operated at a loss in Hong Kong’s virtual asset market for many years, but in 2023, its overall business operations finally began moving toward profitability.
In the second half of the year, Hong Kong’s virtual asset policies were successively implemented. Shortly afterward, in October, expectations surrounding the U.S. spot Bitcoin ETF approvals triggered a bull market. OSL, which had been strategically positioning itself for some time, finally found favorable conditions and formed partnerships with institutions such as Harvest Global Investments, Wahwin Securities, Interactive Brokers, and Mulan Asset Management, strengthening its position in Hong Kong’s virtual asset market.
For OSL, policy changes also prompted internal restructuring to better adapt to market developments. On November 14, 2023, OSL announced via its official website that it had received a strategic investment of approximately HK$710 million from BGX Group, making BGX the largest shareholder with a 29.97% stake (the former BC Technology Group has since changed its name).
On January 12, 2024, the transaction between BGX and OSL was completed. Subsequently, the board was restructured, appointing Pan Zhiyong, currently CEO of BGX, as the new chairman and chief executive officer.
With the U.S. SEC approving spot Bitcoin ETFs in 2024, institutional capital is highly likely to flow into the virtual asset industry, further solidifying its role within traditional finance. After taking over leadership, Pan Zhiyong has defined four strategic pillars for OSL in 2024: global expansion, service innovation, digital finance synergy, and compliance standards—aiming to leverage OSL’s existing compliance and technological advantages to achieve strong results.
Whether OSL can seize these opportunities will be something everyone watches closely.
Hashkey
Hashkey continues to maintain its leading position in Hong Kong’s virtual asset market.
Four months after launch, Hashkey Exchange surpassed 150,000 users, with an average daily trading volume of $630 million. The platform currently supports trading of 18 virtual assets. Over ten securities firms and funds have opened integrated accounts, and more than 20 institutions are collaborating with Hashkey. Six Hong Kong-listed companies—Soundon Group, Tiger View Media, Youngsun Group, Fire Tech, Bluehole Interactive, and Huake Intelligent Investment—have all chosen to open accounts on Hashkey.
Additionally, insurance platform OneDegree officially began providing cold and hot wallet coverage insurance to Hashkey Exchange in November 2023. Hashkey has partnered with China Asset Management and Hamsa to jointly explore innovations in tokenized products.
On January 16, 2024, Hashkey Group completed a nearly $100 million Series A round at a valuation exceeding $1.2 billion, with new investors including large institutional investors, Web3 organizations, and strategic partners.
Hashkey and its leader Dr. Xiao Feng have always been advocates and drivers of compliance-first principles. In the context of Hong Kong’s increasing regulatory environment, Hashkey’s leadership comes as no surprise.
However, amid global trends toward compliance, crypto unicorns like Binance and OKX are also gradually embracing regulation and moving toward compliance. Once these powerful players enter the same regulatory starting line as Hashkey, what strategies will Hashkey adopt to respond to their challenges? This remains to be seen.
(II) The 12 License Applicants Follow Closely Behind
While OSL and Hashkey must continuously defend their established positions, behind them, seasoned Web3 teams, traditional financial institutions, and pioneers from other industries have all entered the race to capture a share of Hong Kong’s virtual asset market.
HKVAX
On August 11, 2023, HKVAX received a preliminary approval notice from the Hong Kong SFC to conduct Type 1 and Type 7 regulated activities (Virtual Asset 1&7 License), positioning it to become Hong Kong’s third licensed virtual asset trading platform. By the end of 2023, HKVAX conducted strategic fundraising and expressed its intention to apply for a VASP license.
According to public information, HKVAX CEO Wu Weiliang previously served as CEO of CoinSuper Premium, the cryptocurrency trading platform under Vanguard Group, a traditional Hong Kong financial institution. Before CoinSuper, Wu worked with top-tier financial institutions including Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan Chase, and Wanhao Asset Management, and held the position of Managing Director at CITIC Futures International.
From left to right: COO霍兆樑 and CEO Wu Weiliang
In January 2024, HKVAX CEO Wu Weiliang attended the “2024 Qingdao · Hong Kong & Macau Financial Night” event, where he shared insights on the opportunities and challenges for Qingdao-based enterprises entering the virtual asset sector.
Wu stated: “China has its own ‘domestic’ blockchains, such as Wenchang Chain, Wuhan Chain, and Ant Chain, which differ significantly from international chains like Ethereum. Therefore, technically speaking, Hong Kong is the preferred platform for enterprises venturing into virtual assets. Hong Kong supports all ‘chains.’ If we connect domestic digital assets through domestic chains—for example, Ant Chain—to Hong Kong, then convert the underlying infrastructure to Ethereum before selling to overseas companies, we can resolve all issues, whether technical or legal, using Hong Kong as a bridge to link domestic businesses with international markets.”
Whether HKVAX will successfully fulfill this bridging role remains to be seen.
VDX
VDX, or Victory Fintech Limited, is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-based brokerage firm Victory Securities. Its core strategy focuses on B2B-oriented virtual asset trading platforms.
Victory Securities, as the first local Hong Kong broker to obtain Virtual Asset Types 1, 4, and 9 licenses, emerged as one of the winners following the implementation of Hong Kong’s 2023 virtual asset policies. On November 24, 2023, Victory Securities became the first local Hong Kong broker approved to offer retail virtual asset services. It now achieves an average monthly turnover of $10 million, with its virtual asset business already profitable.
VDX’s CEO comes from traditional finance with over ten years of high-frequency trading experience and seven years in the virtual asset industry. The COO previously worked at Deutsche Bank and Accenture and served as a virtual asset expert at the Hong Kong SFC. Several team members come from Tencent, Futu, and Tiger Brokers.
Compared to other virtual asset platforms, VDX operates more like a startup in expanding its business. Its operations primarily focus on providing Web3 technology and liquidity solutions to partner financial institutions while making ecosystem investments in native Web3 venture funds.
With Victory Securities already achieving strong results, VDX is expected to make new moves in 2024.
BGE
Hong Kong BGE Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of listed company HKE Holdings. HKE Holdings Chairman Lian Haomin is the founder of Monmonkey Group Holdings Limited (Monmonkey Group), also known as Da Sheng Group, which holds Hong Kong’s traditional financial Types 1, 4, and 9 licenses.
Lian Haomin, born in 1992
After graduating from a U.S. university in 2017, Lian Haomin worked and interned at institutions such as JP Morgan and China Taiping Group. He later discovered his family’s financial business was suffering losses and requested to take over management. At the time, when giants like Xiaomi, Meituan, and Alibaba were listing in Hong Kong, Lian took control of the family’s Da Sheng Group, investing in Hong Kong IPOs and secondary market projects, turning the company profitable. However, he suffered major setbacks in 2021 with Evergrande’s Fangchebao.
On January 8, 2024, according to the Sing Tao Daily, Lian Haomin had invested tens of millions of dollars in blockchain-related projects over the past three years. After acquiring HKE Holdings in 2021, the HKE virtual asset exchange team grew to over 120 people. The exchange, BGE, could potentially receive its SFC virtual asset trading platform license as early as the first quarter of this year. Once licensed, it plans to expand operations into Southeast Asia.
HKbitEX
HKbitEX is one of the four core business units of Tai Chi Capital (Tykhe Capital Group). Tai Chi Capital’s main operations include digital asset trading, capital markets and wealth management, digital asset custody, and technology R&D. On September 10, 2023, Tai Chi Capital launched the PRINCE token—the first real estate STO in Hong Kong targeting “professional investors”—and the first fund tokenization fundraising model approved by the Hong Kong SFC.
Founder and CEO Gao Han previously worked at the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and was involved in initiatives such as Stock Connect and Bond Connect. The platform has attracted several former HKEX employees, forming a so-called “HKEX regular army.”
Gao Han, Founder of HKbitEX
In December 2023, HKbitEX signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Shanghai Technology Exchange, jointly established by the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Shanghai Municipal Government. Under the memorandum, Shanghai Technology Exchange and HKbitEX will jointly explore technology-driven financial solutions for innovative enterprises based on asset tokenization, addressing issues such as mismatched financing needs, valuation difficulties, and inadequate exit mechanisms.
It is expected that in 2024, HKbitEX will conduct further experiments with more partners in the RWA space.
Meex
Meex’s emergence exemplifies seasoned Web3 teams establishing themselves in Hong Kong. On October 12, 2023, Meex Digital Securities Limited submitted an application for a virtual asset trading platform license to the Hong Kong SFC.
Backed by a Hong Kong consortium, Meex emphasizes asset security. Customer assets are independently custodied by TCSP-licensed Meex Custody Services Limited. It is currently applying for Virtual Asset Types 1, 7, and VASP licenses.
Jason FENG serves as Meex CEO, formerly acting CEO of Kaisa Group. CTO Lu Zhichao previously served as Technical Director at Bybit. Operations lead Vince Lam previously held the same role at HKbitEX, another exchange applying for a license. Other team members include individuals licensed by the Hong Kong SFC and legal professionals.
ZhongAn International and Huawei Cloud Hong Kong are current strategic partners of Meex. Since the introduction of Hong Kong’s new virtual asset licensing regime, Meex has moved fastest among the new applicants. Whether it can gain further advantages remains to be seen.
PantherTrade
Panthertrade (Hong Kong) Limited, also known as Leopard Trading (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., submitted its virtual asset trading platform license application on November 15, 2023. According to insiders, Panthertrade (Hong Kong) Limited is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Futu Securities, marking another strong push by a traditional broker into the virtual asset market.
On March 7, 2023, Panthertrade filed incorporation documents, with Fang Xingzhi as the first director, previously employed at JD Securities. On September 14, 2023, PantherTrade appointed Chen Zhihu as director, formerly Investment Director at Huobi Asset Management (Hong Kong) Limited; another director is Hung Yik-man.
As early as 2021, Futu Securities began expanding its footprint in the crypto industry. On April 2021, a user asked Futu BullNiu platform CEO Li Hua whether Bitcoin trading would be available on the platform. Li replied: “Very likely for Hong Kong and overseas customers, probably not for mainland customers.”
However, due to previous regulatory restrictions, trading of stocks like GBTC and EHTE was suspended. Now, returning to Hong Kong’s virtual asset market, the regulatory environment has drastically improved. Whether Futu Securities has adequately prepared during its long wait will soon become clear.
OKX
Unlike other competitors, OKX’s entry sends two clear signals: First, global compliance for virtual asset trading platforms is now an irreversible trend; second, Hong Kong will inevitably become the global center for virtual asset market activity.
In 2023, Binance and CZ compromised with the U.S. SEC by paying hefty fines, proving that even the industry’s top unicorn has chosen to embrace regulation—confirming compliance as an unavoidable reality. For leading exchanges like OKX, completing compliance as soon as possible is clearly the best path forward.
On January 16, 2024, OKX Middle East officially received a Virtual Asset Service Provider (VASP) license from Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA). The license will become effective once OKX Middle East meets all remaining VARA conditions and specific localization requirements. Following regulatory review and approval, OKX Middle East will officially commence operations.
OKX’s compliance journey has been steady—the arrival in Hong Kong is only a matter of time. The market is watching: What impact will OKX bring upon formally entering Hong Kong? Will it strictly adhere to exchange responsibilities, or boldly innovate and launch new products to drive transformation in Hong Kong’s virtual asset market? The industry eagerly awaits OKX’s response.
VAEX
Similar to OKX, VAEX’s establishment and license application represent legacy crypto exchanges embracing compliance.
VAEX became the eighth virtual asset trading platform license applicant on November 25, 2023. As early as February 2023, KuCoin publicly announced technical support for VAEX via official channels. Now that VAEX has entered Hong Kong, it effectively marks KuCoin’s move toward regulatory compliance.
KuCoin’s investment arm, KuCoin Ventures, is also active in Hong Kong. In March 2023, it led a $10 million investment in CNHC, a Hong Kong-based stablecoin issuer.
Three months later, amid shifting 2023 regulations, the platform confirmed tightening its compliance procedures by introducing mandatory KYC identity checks. It is foreseeable that if VAEX successfully establishes itself in Hong Kong, it will create stronger synergies with KuCoin, helping KuCoin solidify its position.
Accumulus
Accumulus’ entry represents another trend: Mainland Chinese internet and traditional enterprises may also choose to leverage virtual assets and the Hong Kong market for broader business expansion.
Yunzhanghu (Tianjin) Co., Ltd., ranked among China’s Top 500 Enterprises, secured over HK$1.1 billion in outbound investment quota and registered Yunzhanghu Greater Bay Area Technology (Hong Kong) Co., Limited—Accumulus GBA Technology (Hong Kong) Co., Limited—in Hong Kong. On December 6, 2023, it formally submitted a virtual asset trading platform license application to the Hong Kong SFC.
Having provided flexible employment services for seven years, Yunzhanghu is now one of China’s largest online human resources service providers. It has cumulatively served over 82 million freelancers across 120 countries and regions worldwide, generating over HK$110 billion in revenue in 2022.
Chairman Yang Hui serves as a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, Standing Committee Member of the All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, Standing Committee Member of the 14th Tianjin Municipal CPPCC, Vice Chair of Tianjin Federation of Industry and Commerce, Standing Committee Member of Tianjin Democratic Construction Association, Vice President of Tianjin Business Federation, Standing Committee Member of Binhai New Area People’s Congress, and member of the China Democratic National Construction Association.
Among all virtual asset trading platform applicants, Accumulus has the most unique background. With strong mainland resources providing special advantages in funding and talent, if it focuses on security and long-term development, Accumulus could achieve success. However, given that mainland China has long been isolated from the global virtual asset market, there are significant technological and cognitive gaps. Whether its platform and services will gain market acceptance remains highly uncertain.
Nonetheless, hopes remain that Accumulus can successfully establish roots in Hong Kong, potentially providing strong momentum for the development of mainland China’s Web3 ecosystem.
DFX Labs
DFX Labs Company Limited became the last virtual asset trading platform license applicant in 2023, submitting its application on December 27, 2023.
Simon Au Yeung, COO of DFX Labs, graduated from the Wharton School. Previously, he served as CEO at Blockchain Finance and BGE. After leaving BGE, he co-founded IEEE and joined DFX Labs in September 2023.
The DFX official website is currently in trial operation, supporting BTC and ETH trading.
HKVAEX
HKVAEX was founded in December 2022 and launched its virtual asset trading platform in 2023.
Stanley Fung serves as CEO of HKVAEX. A University of Toronto graduate, before joining HKVAEX, he served as head of exchange operations at Fire Tech and CEO of Huobi Hong Kong.
Previously, Hong Kong media outlet SCMP indicated substantial evidence suggesting HKVAEX was established by Binance for its Hong Kong operations. However, Binance later denied the claim, stating that “HKVAEX” does not belong to any Binance-affiliated company.
In June 2023, HKVAEX participated in supporting HKVAC’s launch of the “Virtual Asset Index” and “Virtual Asset Exchange Ratings,” providing third-party reference data for professional investors and the public engaging in market activities. Additionally, the HKVAEX team actively participates in various Hong Kong virtual asset events, including InvestHK, Tencent Cloud, and Cyberport conferences.
Whether HKVAEX’s deep Web3 expertise and active market engagement can help it establish a foothold remains to be seen.
BitHarbour
The final applicant submitted its application on January 11, 2024. BitHarbour (Hong Kong) Limited, also known as Bi Feng Gang (Hong Kong) Co., Ltd., operates the trading platform named BitHarbour. BitHarbour is also the applicant with the least publicly disclosed information.
However, within BitHarbour’s service agreement, one clause states that users must “agree that all investment operations conducted on CoinEx represent genuine investment intent and unconditionally accept the potential risks and returns of investment decisions.” This suggests a possible operational relationship between BitHarbour and CoinEx.
Conclusion
Overall, Hong Kong’s virtual asset trading platforms fall into three main categories: seasoned Web3 companies, traditional financial institutions, and determined Web3 entrepreneurs. Seasoned Web3 firms hold clear advantages with rich experience and market understanding. Traditional financial institutions benefit from vast potential capital and customer bases. Entrepreneurs, however, face numerous challenges ahead.
We cannot predict who will ultimately prevail. But regardless of the winner, the intense competition among virtual asset trading platforms clearly shows: The future of the virtual asset market cannot be separated from Hong Kong.
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