Stablecoin Licensing and Tokenized Bonds Incoming

Key Takeaways:

Hong Kong introduces “Policy Statement 2.0” with a new LEAP framework to expand digital asset adoption.
Licensing regime for stablecoin issuers will go live on August 1, signaling real-world crypto integration.
Government-backed tokenized bonds and ETFs are set to become standard, accelerating financial tokenization.

Hong Kong has launched a sweeping new digital asset policy aimed at solidifying its role as a global crypto and tokenization hub. Branded as “Policy Statement 2.0,” the framework deepens the city’s commitment to regulating, expanding, and mainstreaming digital assets—especially stablecoins and tokenized products—through a concrete and strategic initiative called LEAP.

Read More: Hong Kong to Introduce New Virtual Asset Policy Framework by End-2025

Hong Kong’s LEAP: A Four-Pillar Strategy to Dominate Digital Finance

Unveiled on June 26, Policy Statement 2.0 introduces the LEAP framework—an acronym for Legal, Expand, Advance, and People. It is designed to scale up the adoption of digital assets while maintaining a focus on risk management, regulatory clarity, and innovation across sectors.

Legal & Regulatory Streamlining

The Hong Kong government, through its Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau (FSTB), is working with the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) to create a comprehensive legal and regulatory regime. The key targets include:

Licensing of digital asset dealing and custodian service providers.
A full legal review to support tokenization of real-world assets (RWAs) such as bonds, metals, and other financial instruments.
Establishing a unified framework that enables seamless settlement, registration, and trading of tokenized assets.

The SFC will act as the lead authority for licensing, ensuring that all platforms and service providers operate under strict compliance with investor protection mandates.

Tokenization Goes Mainstream in Hong Kong

Government-Issued Tokenized Bonds and ETFs

Hong Kong is moving beyond regulatory theory and into application. The government announced that tokenized government bonds will become a regular issuance tool. This positions the city as one of the first jurisdictions to institutionalize digital bond offerings under regulatory oversight.

It is also exploring incentives for tokenizing real-world assets to enhance liquidity, accessibility, and efficiency. Specifically:

Clarification of stamp duty rules on tokenized ETFs will simplify secondary market participation.
Trading of these tokenized products will be enabled on licensed digital asset platforms or other regulated channels.

Hong Kong’s move follows a broader trend where financial instruments—from fixed income to commodities—are increasingly issued in tokenized formats. For instance, large asset managers like BlackRock and Franklin Templeton have rolled out tokenized funds in recent months that have on-chain settlement capabilities that are attached to public and permissioned blockchains.

Stablecoin Licensing Kicks Off August 1

The bold measures under Policy Statement 2.0 include the introduction of official licensing for stablecoin issuers, with effect from 1 st August, 2025 being the most significant of them all. They’re taking this step in order to:

Compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) standards.
Proper backing of stablecoins with transparent, real-world assets.
Risk mitigation for algorithmic or uncollateralized stablecoin models.

The government will be interested as well to receive proposals from market stakeholders on how licensed stablecoins might be incorporated into public sector processes, further demonstrating them to be useful tools in the real world.

This move will put Hong Kong’s regulator timeline in line with other leading financial centers. For comparison:

The European Union’s MiCA framework will regulate stablecoins starting mid-2025.
In the United States, Congressional proposals around stablecoin oversight remain pending, giving Hong Kong a first-mover advantage in Asia.

Hong Kong’s Bid to Become Asia’s Crypto Capital

After crypto trading was reopened to retail investors in 2022 Hong Kong indicated that it would be taking the drive into the next stage of blockchain finance. Now, Policy Statement 2.0 is putting teeth behind that commitment.

Key milestones include: