The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has designated Anchorpoint Financial and HSBC as the first licensed stablecoin issuers. Anchorpoint is backed by Standard Chartered, Hong Kong Telecom, and Animoca Brands—a consortium that, together with HSBC, reflects a deliberate preference for systemically important institutions. The selection follows 36 formal applications (from 77 initial expressions of interest), including strong participation from mainland-linked firms such as Ant Group and JD.com, although Beijing ultimately moved to restrict onshore stablecoin activity. HKMA CEO Eddie Yue emphasized that future approvals will remain tightly limited.

The first issuance wave will focus on HKD-pegged stablecoins, expected to go live between mid and late 2026, with core use cases in cross-border payments and tokenized asset settlement, and potential expansion into domestic payments and programmable finance. A central gating factor is Hong Kong’s strict AML framework: issuers are, at least initially, required to verify all holders unless alternative controls demonstrably achieve equivalent risk mitigation. This effectively advantages banks with established compliance infrastructure, though the HKMA has signaled this constraint may be relaxed over time, consistent with its phased liberalization approach in digital asset markets.

From a prudential perspective, Hong Kong is simultaneously aligned with and differentiated from global standards. While adopting the Basel crypto framework from January 2026, it introduces a carveout for authorized local stablecoins, avoiding punitive capital treatment tied to permissionless blockchain exposure. The reserve regime is comparatively flexible—permitting short-duration bank deposits, sovereign paper, repos, and money market funds—and issuers may conduct additional approved activities. As in the EU and US, interest payments to holders are prohibited, but marketing incentives remain permissible, reflecting a calibrated balance between innovation, financial stability, and user protection.