Hong Kong’s regulator, Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has granted a license to Bullish, a leading virtual asset trading platform. This approval brings the total number of licensed platforms in Hong Kong to 10.
Bullish, which is owned by EOS developer Block.one, has also made waves by acquiring CoinDesk, a prominent media, event, and index platform.
Liu Dehao, Bullish’s Senior Vice President and Head of Global Sales, emphasized in a recent interview that Hong Kong is a critical location for the company, with more than 100 employees currently based in the region. Liu also shared that the platform intends to focus on institutional clients after receiving its license, signaling a strategic shift towards catering to larger-scale investors.
The SFC’s decision to approve Bullish’s license is a part of a wave of increasing virtual asset trading platform registrations. At present, there are eight more applicants seeking approval, and Ye Zhiheng, Executive Director of the SFC’s Intermediary Institutions Department, highlighted that while the standards for licensing are becoming clearer, each applicant will need to meet specific requirements before a license is granted.
Furthermore, the SFC recently made headlines for approving the China Asset Management Hong Kong Dollar Digital Currency Fund, marking the region’s first-ever retail tokenized fund. The Asia-Pacific region is also making significant strides in tokenization, with initiatives such as gold tokenization being explored to enhance investment flexibility and security. By integrating physical gold with blockchain technology, these efforts aim to create new opportunities for investors, as noted by Paul Chan, Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government.
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