TechFlow News, October 31 — The Hong Kong FinTech Week opened on October 31. During his speech, Adrian Cheng, Chief Executive Officer of New World Development, stated that Hong Kong is poised to embrace three major opportunities to become a unique global hub for virtual assets—specifically as a "digital financial asset issuance center," an "integrated ecosystem combining traditional and digital finance," and a "Greater Bay Area cross-border blockchain financial center."
The Hong Kong SAR government will launch a licensing regime for "virtual asset service providers" next year. Cheng emphasized that this marks a transformative moment for Hong Kong as an international financial center. Thanks to the "one country, two systems" framework, Hong Kong will become the only region within mainland China's reach where virtual asset service providers are regulated by law, creating new opportunities.
He noted that over the past 30 years, Hong Kong has maintained a significant position in the global securities issuance market. Given its long-standing market share in global securities issuance, Hong Kong is well-positioned to gain substantial advantages in the emerging tokenized securities market, thereby driving its transformation into a global hub for digital financial asset issuance.
Cheng added that if Hong Kong successfully builds a comprehensive "cross-border blockchain financial platform," it could advance the development of central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), including improving efficiency in peer-to-peer transactions. Borrowers and lenders would also benefit from more efficient platforms and broader transaction options. He stressed that building such a platform requires stronger government support and the joint efforts of more world-class talent.Original Link
