Bitcoin News, Crypto News
HashKey Introduces AVA and LINK Trading Options for Retail Investors in Hong Kong
Aug
HashKey Introduces AVA and LINK Trading for Retail Investors in Hong Kong
Hong Kong’s retail cryptocurrency investors now have access to additional trading options following the approval for listing Avalanche (AVAX) and Chainlink (LINK) on HashKey, one of the two fully licensed crypto exchanges in the region. Previously, those investing less than $1 million were limited to Bitcoin and Ether.
Expanded Investment Choices
The recent developments allow retail investors in Hong Kong to engage in trading both AVAX and LINK against the US dollar. As of now, professional investors, defined as individuals with portfolios exceeding 8 million Hong Kong dollars (approximately $1 million) or representatives of financial institutions, enjoy a broader array of cryptocurrency choices.
Legal Assurance with Listed Tokens
Avalanche and Chainlink were selected for listing on HashKey due to their legal clarity, as stated by CEO Livio Weng. In contrast to several higher-market-cap cryptocurrencies, these tokens have encountered fewer legal disputes.
AVAX serves as the native token of the Avalanche network and holds a market capitalization of $9.3 billion, ranking as the 13th largest cryptocurrency. Meanwhile, LINK, utilized within the Chainlink oracle network, is ranked 16th with a market cap of $6.9 billion. Weng remarked:
“This signifies a swift advancement for Hong Kong in the Web3 space. This acceleration may be attributed to various factors, particularly Trump’s declaration regarding the importance of Web3 in the United States.”
Additionally, Weng indicated that further approval for the retail listing of more cryptocurrencies could be anticipated “within weeks.”
Restricted Exchange Options in Hong Kong
Since August 2023, Hong Kong has permitted retail crypto trading, coinciding with the licensing upgrades at HashKey and OSL, the other fully compliant crypto exchange in the territory. Other exchanges function under a “deemed to be licensed” classification. The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has mandated that firms lacking this classification or a license cease operations by June 1.
Source: Hashkey Exchange
Furthermore, the SFC halted the acceptance of new license applications for virtual asset trading platforms as of February, during which time over 13 exchanges have withdrawn their applications.