Hong Kong Securities Regulator to Allow Licensed Platforms to Offer Staking Services
The post Hong Kong Securities Regulator to Allow Licensed Platforms to Offer Staking Services appeared on BitcoinEthereumNews.com.
Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) will greenlight trading platforms with licensed virtual asset trading platforms to offer staking services. The permission is part of the regulator’s push to position the country as a crypto hub in the Asia-Pacific region. In the U.S., the SEC met with Jito Labs and Multicoin Capital in February to discuss integrating staking into crypto exchange-traded products. Attractive Market Choi Fung Yee, also known as Christina Choi, SFC Executive Director of the Investments Products Division, announced the framework during her keynote speech at the Hong Kong Web3 Festival 2025. “Just as the floppy disk transformed how we stored information long before Web 1.0 took hold, blockchain technology has the potential to rewrite the rules of finance and beyond,” Choi said. The new framework requires platforms to maintain custody of staked assets and implement specific safeguards. To offer staking, licensed platforms need to get approval from the SFC first. They also must keep control of the ways users can withdraw their staked assets. Platforms are required to disclose several risks to users. These include potential slashing penalties, the process and timeframe for unstaking, any lock-up periods, and technical vulnerabilities such as hacking risks and platform inactivity. The upcoming nod for staking comes as part of the SFC’s roadmap to enhance market access, compliance, and efficiency to accommodate innovations like tokenized securities and smart contracts. The SFC released the new roadmap in February, covering 12 initiatives to improve market security, innovation, and growth, including regulating over-the-counter crypto trading and custodian services. The SFC also plans to explore opportunities for token listings, derivatives, and staking, focusing primarily on professional investors while considering adjustments for retail interaction. The jurisdiction became Asia’s first to launch spot ETFs for Bitcoin and Ethereum in April last year, following the debut of…
Filed under: News - @ April 9, 2025 6:28 am