Hong Kong is believed to be a freer place for crypto enthusiasts. BTCC exchange case alone is enough to prove it. At the end of January, one of the oldest crypto burse BTCC, initially headquartered in China, announced about its decision to move to Chinese Special Administrative Region amidst pressure from the socialist government.
However, it is not that easy as one could have imagined. Recently, Hong Kong’s financial controller – Securities and Futures Commission – promised to keep an eye on cyber assets and ICO market as well as to continue “policing” it.
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Hong Kong–Bitcoin Relationship: All That Glisters Is Not Gold
On February 9, Hong Kong’s SFC unveiled its true position concerning cryptos. Its Chief Executive Officer Ashley Alder in a recent announcement stressed that after Chinese authorities started curbing on cyber assets, banning crypto trading venues and ICOs in the country, bitcoiners and altcoiners ought to make sure they act reasonably and legally when emitting tokens or running burses.
Notably, an analogous statement came out from the US related controller at the end of 2017.
“We will continue to police the market and enforce when necessary. But we are also urging market professionals to do proper gatekeeping to prevent frauds or dubious fundraising and to assist us in ensuring compliance with the law,” said Alder.Even though Hong Kong has been trying to keep poise between Chinese restrictions and compliance concerning crypto industry, it remains quite vigilant.
Julia Leung, Hong Kong regulator’s executive head of intermediaries, added to Alder’s announcement that if investors are not aware of jeopardies that virtual assets and tokens carry or are not sure about them, they better not pile into them. At the same time, she emphasized, those who dare to invest, should be cognizant of potential risks and losses due to cyber-attacks.
