- Harvest Hong Kong, one of China’s largest fund managers, submitted an application for a spot Bitcoin ETF to the Hong Kong SFC on January 26.
- According to reports, the Hong Kong regulatory body may follow a similar approach to the US SEC to ensure a level playing field.
- Thanks to its crypto-friendly regulatory approach, Hong Kong has become one of Asia’s leading crypto destinations in 2023.
According to recent reports, a Chinese fund management company has submitted an application for a spot Bitcoin ETF to the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission.
Harvest Fund Files for Spot Bitcoin ETF
According to reports from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), just a few weeks after the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the first spot Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF), the first spot Bitcoin ETF application has been made to the Hong Kong SFC.
Harvest Hong Kong, one of China’s largest fund managers, submitted an application for a spot Bitcoin ETF to the Hong Kong SFC on January 26. According to reports, the regulatory body is actively working to expedite the approval process for ETFs in the country and aims to launch the first Hong Kong spot Bitcoin ETF after the Chinese New Year on February 10.
The Hong Kong regulatory body may follow a similar approach to the US SEC to ensure a level playing field and may approve multiple spot ETFs. While Harvest Fund could be the first to apply for a spot BTC ETF, it may not be the only one. Several regional financial institutions in the country have expressed interest in launching spot BTC ETFs in 2024.
More institutions are in line
According to a report by COINOTAG on January 19, at least 10 financial institutions in the country are actively working on launching spot BTC ETFs. Financial giants like Venture Smart Financial Holdings have set their goals to launch spot ETFs in the first quarter of 2024.
Hong Kong has become one of Asia’s leading crypto destinations in 2023 thanks to its crypto-friendly regulatory approach. In 2023, the SFC enabled both institutional and retail investors to participate in crypto activities by creating crypto-focused regulations. Before the US SEC approved the first spot BTC ETF, the Hong Kong SFC expressed that it could accept applications for crypto-based ETFs and authorize existing crypto futures ETFs.
