Hong Kong targets stablecoin trading and tokenized real world assets

Hong Kong has laid out plans to expand regulated stablecoin trading, tokenized real world assets and digital bond infrastructure as part of its 2026 Policy Address, while preparing round the clock central bank digital currency settlement under EnsembleTX by the end of the year.

The Hong Kong SAR Government said in the policy document released on Sept. 16 that the Securities and Futures Commission will enhance virtual asset licensing rules and develop specific regulatory guidelines for virtual asset service providers.

Regulators plan to improve rules for tokenized investment products so that gold and other suitable real world assets can be issued and traded in tokenized form on licensed platforms. Regulated stablecoins are expected to be permitted for trading on licensed virtual asset platforms and used to settle tokenized money market funds.

The measures form part of Hong Kong’s plan to develop its financial markets through digitalization and tokenization, covering stablecoins, digital bonds, tokenized deposits, wholesale CBDC settlement and digital asset custody surveillance.

Hong Kong plans more regulated stablecoin uses

The stablecoin proposals follow the introduction of Hong Kong’s regulated issuer framework and the first licenses granted earlier this year.

As crypto.news previously reported, the city’s first stablecoin issuer licenses went to two institutions with banking backgrounds in April. The framework requires licensed issuers to maintain eligible reserve assets and remain under ongoing regulatory supervision.

One of the licensed issuers, Standard Chartered backed Anchorpoint Financial, has since started rolling out its Hong Kong dollar backed HKDAP stablecoin.

Anchorpoint opened HKDAP beta access in August for institutional distributors and professional investors. The stablecoin initially supports cross border payments, fiat conversion and settlement involving tokenized real world assets, with HashKey Exchange joining as an authorized distribution partner.

Standard Chartered became the first bank distributor for HKDAP later that month, providing eligible institutional clients and partners with access to the regulated token. The bank said it planned to introduce subscription and settlement services for tokenized money market funds during the fourth quarter of 2026.

Hong Kong’s new Policy Address extends that direction by calling for regulated stablecoins to be traded through licensed virtual asset trading platforms and used for tokenized money market fund settlement.

Tokenized gold and other assets could reach licensed platforms

Tokenization forms another part of the government’s financial market plans, with the SFC expected to improve the regulatory framework for tokenized investment products.

The proposed framework would facilitate the issuance and trading of tokenized gold and other suitable real world assets through licensed platforms, while providing room for new products.

Hong Kong had already set out a regulatory path covering exchanges, stablecoin issuers, dealers and custodians under its second digital asset policy statement in 2025. The framework included plans to support tokenized real world assets and examine legal changes needed for tokenized financial instruments.

Digital bonds have since become a larger part of the city’s tokenization activity. Between 2025 and the first half of 2026, digital bonds issued in Hong Kong accounted for nearly 50% of the global market, according to the Policy Address.

In June, the Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation priced a HK$12 billion digital bond, equivalent to roughly $1.5 billion. The corporation described the transaction as the world’s largest completed tokenized bond issuance, while orders reached around HK$24 billion from more than 100 institutional accounts.

The government now plans to regularize digital bond issuance and explore the use of digital currencies throughout the bonds’ life cycle, including settlement, dividend payments and redemption.

Tests involving tokenized Exchange Fund Bills are scheduled by the end of 2026. More than HK$1.3 trillion worth of Exchange Fund Bills could be used in the program as authorities examine round the clock applications of tokenization for banks’ asset and liability management.

The HKMA’s Tokenised Bond Expert Group will conduct a second phase legal review with the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau to examine the application of distributed ledger technology in capital markets.

The group, formed earlier this year, includes JPMorgan Securities, HSBC, Standard Chartered Bank, UBS, Ant Digital and HashKey Group among its participants. It was established after Hong Kong had issued more than HK$6.8 billion in tokenized government bonds across multiple offerings.

CMU OmniClear Limited is expected to establish a digital asset platform during 2026 to provide services covering the issuance and settlement of digital bonds.

EnsembleTX targets 24 hour CBDC settlement

Hong Kong’s monetary authority is preparing another part of the settlement infrastructure around tokenized finance.

The HKMA plans to implement CBDC settlement and 24 hour operations under EnsembleTX around the end of 2026, while continuing to explore further applications for tokenized deposits.

Earlier government plans had placed EnsembleTX within Hong Kong’s work on wholesale CBDC infrastructure and tokenized deposits. The 2026 to 2027 Budget said authorities were developing digital asset regulation alongside tokenized bonds, stablecoins and market infrastructure.

The government intends to combine the expansion of those markets with tighter surveillance. The SFC is scheduled to begin operating a digital asset custody surveillance system during the second half of 2026, according to the Policy Address.

Its CrypTech initiative is expected to activate big data market surveillance and anti money laundering surveillance components in 2027. The HKMA has separately started a Quantum Preparedness Index intended to guide financial institutions as advances in quantum computing create a need to upgrade cryptographic systems.