Hong Kong crypto exchange licenses are now costing applicants millions of dollars, a significant drop from the $25 million price tag seen a year ago.
In an exclusive interview with the Financial Times, Livio Wang, the chief operating officer of HashKey Group, disclosed that the cost of crypto exchange licenses is in the range of tens of millions of Hong Kong dollars, equivalent to several million in USD. He clarified that the expenses for preparing license review materials differ from those incurred during the operational phase.
Since June 1, Hong Kong regulators have expelled all unlicensed crypto exchanges in the East Asian metropolis, with the threat of criminal charges for non-compliant entities. Currently, there are over 11 firms designated as “deemed to be licensed.” By contrast, last year saw only two fully licensed exchanges: HashKey and OSL.
During the interview, Wang revealed that HashKey Exchange now oversees $500 million in user assets and has facilitated $440 billion in cumulative trades since its inception. He noted a significant increase in activated customers, with a 267% rise from the previous week and a tripling of newly activated users.
In April, HashKey expanded its operations by launching a global exchange based in Bermuda for international clients, following the lead of Coinbase. Unlike its Hong Kong-based counterpart, HashKey Global will not cater to clients in Hong Kong, China, the United States, and various other regions.
The implementation of Hong Kong’s exchange licensing framework faced a setback last year when an unlicensed crypto exchange, JPEX, managed to defraud investors of $166 million before collapsing in September 2023.
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