New legislation tailored to regulate the crypto space in Hong Kong aims to implement a licensing regime for crypto service providers. The respective changes to the region’s anti-money laundering (AML) rules have been submitted to its legislature while a recently published report examines relevant threats.
The authors of draft seek to introduce licensing for virtual asset service providers (VASPs) and registration for dealers in precious metals and stones (DPMS). The goal is to impose anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing obligations on the businesses operating in the two sectors.
Under the upcoming legislation, the SFC will also be responsible to ensure that virtual asset service providers adopt proper listing and trading policies as well as financial reporting and disclosure procedures. The Commission will also observe the implementation of mechanisms designed to prevent market manipulation and conflicts of interest.
