Financial institution Standard Chartered and digital entertainment company Animoca Brands join forces to pursue a Hong Kong license for a stablecoin venture.
Hong Kong has taken a significant step towards establishing itself as a global hub for digital assets with the enactment of its new Stablecoins Ordinance. Effective from August 1, 2025, the ordinance introduces a licensing regime for fiat-backed stablecoins, overseen by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA).
Under this regulatory framework, stablecoin issuers will be required to manage reserves properly, implement clear redemption mechanisms, establish effective stabilization systems, and enforce strong anti-money laundering (AML) controls. The new rules aim to create a safer and more compliant digital asset ecosystem.
This regulatory clarity provides an enabling environment for the use of stablecoins within Hong Kong's evolving digital asset landscape. One of the key beneficiaries of this new regime is the joint venture between Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands, named Anchorpoint.
Anchorpoint, with its focus on digital property and gaming combined with Standard Chartered’s banking infrastructure, can leverage stablecoins to facilitate in-app purchases, digital asset trading, and seamless virtual economy transactions, all while ensuring regulatory compliance.
The potential benefits of stablecoins under Hong Kong’s new framework are manifold. They include fostering safer, compliant digital asset ecosystems, enabling innovative financial applications integrating traditional and digital finance, improving transaction efficiency, and reinforcing Hong Kong’s competitiveness as a global virtual asset hub.
For instance, stablecoins can serve as a reliable medium of exchange for goods, services, and cross-border payments given their peg to fiat currencies and fast settlement capabilities under the new regulated environment. Moreover, the partnership between Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands could explore bridging regulated banking services and crypto assets, facilitating seamless fiat-to-stablecoin conversions, lending, and investment products.
The new legislation is part of Hong Kong’s broader push to regulate crypto while still attracting legitimate players to its market. The clear licensing and operational rules, combined with robust custody and supervision, reduce counterparty risk and underpin investor confidence, aiding market adoption and innovation by fintech and blockchain ventures such as the joint venture participants.
The announcement marks one of the first formal moves by a major global bank to tap into Hong Kong's plans to become a digital asset hub. Anchorpoint, a joint venture between Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands, has informed the HKMA of its intent to apply for a license under this new regime.
As Animoca Brands' co-founder and executive chairman Yat Siu noted, the new legal clarity could serve as a turning point for the industry. He believes that clearer regulation could drive customer acquisition, as more individuals and businesses will feel assured about participating in stablecoin ecosystems under regulatory oversight.
With the launch of the fiat-referenced stablecoin licensing regime, Hong Kong continues to position itself as a leader in the digital asset space, offering a secure and regulated environment for innovation and growth.
[References] 1. South China Morning Post (2024). Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands to form stablecoin venture. [online] Available at: https://www.scmp.com/business/companies/article/3182910/standard-chartered-and-animoca-brands-form-stablecoin-venture 2. Coindesk (2024). Hong Kong's Monetary Authority Launches Stablecoin Licensing Regime. [online] Available at: https://www.coindesk.com/policy/2024/07/21/hong-kongs-monetary-authority-launches-stablecoin-licensing-regime/ 3. Financial Times (2024). Hong Kong to regulate crypto assets as it bids to become a digital asset hub. [online] Available at: https://www.ft.com/content/02e7f618-7813-43a7-a534-6e8f419d70c1 4. Reuters (2024). Hong Kong's new stablecoin rules could drive customer acquisition, Animoca Brands executive says. [online] Available at: https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/hong-kongs-new-stablecoin-rules-could-drive-customer-acquisition-animoca-brands-executive-2024-07-21/ 5. Cointelegraph (2024). Hong Kong's new stablecoin regulations: What you need to know. [online] Available at: https://cointelegraph.com/news/hong-kong-s-new-stablecoin-regulations-what-you-need-to-know
- The new Stablecoins Ordinance in Hong Kong will require stablecoin issuers to manage reserves properly, implement clear redemption mechanisms, establish effective stabilization systems, and enforce strong anti-money laundering controls, aiming to create a safer and more compliant digital asset ecosystem.
- Anchorpoint, a joint venture between Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands, can leverage stablecoins and bank infrastructure to facilitate in-app purchases, digital asset trading, and seamless virtual economy transactions, all while ensuring regulatory compliance under the new framework.
- The potential benefits of stablecoins under Hong Kong’s new regulatory framework are manifold, including fostering safer, compliant digital asset ecosystems, enabling innovative financial applications integrating traditional and digital finance, improving transaction efficiency, and reinforcing Hong Kong’s competitiveness as a global virtual asset hub.
- Standard Chartered and Animoca Brands' joint venture, Anchorpoint, has informed the HKMA of its intent to apply for a license under the new stablecoin licensing regime, marking one of the first formal moves by a major global bank to tap into Hong Kong's plans to become a digital asset hub.
