The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has introduced a comprehensive roadmap aimed at reinforcing the city’s role as a global leader in cryptocurrency and virtual assets.
Announced on February 19, the ASPIRe initiative seeks to modernize Hong Kong’s regulatory framework, ensuring resilience against market volatility, fragmented liquidity, and regulatory arbitrage while fostering innovation. The plan is structured around five key pillars: Access, Safeguards, Products, Infrastructure, and Relationships, with twelve initiatives spread across these categories.
The roadmap aims to streamline market entry for crypto firms, enhance compliance standards without hindering industry growth, and expand Hong Kong’s range of regulated virtual asset offerings. It also focuses on strengthening oversight mechanisms and reinforcing transparency, engagement, and education to position the city as a trusted center for digital asset liquidity.
The SFC acknowledged the growing role of institutional investors in shaping the global crypto landscape but pointed out that regulatory inconsistencies across major financial hubs—including the U.S., Singapore, Europe, and China—present challenges to compliance and market stability. The commission also emphasized the increasing convergence of traditional finance and crypto, advocating for regulatory frameworks that integrate established financial standards with blockchain innovation. It urged regulators to adapt legacy financial rules to accommodate emerging asset classes like tokenized securities and decentralized finance while maintaining core compliance principles.
Notably, the SFC had earlier proposed to expand its workforce to enhance its efforts to establish the region as a leading cryptocurrency hub. Its 2025-2026 budget proposal includes the addition of 15 new positions, with eight dedicated to strengthening virtual asset regulation, market surveillance, and enforcement investigations.
If you want to read more news articles like this, visit DeFi Planet and follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, and CoinMarketCap Community.
“Take control of your crypto portfolio with MARKETS PRO, DeFi Planet’s suite of analytics tools.”
