Seizing Regulatory Opportunities, Swiss SEBA Bank Approved for Crypto Services in Hong Kong, Standard Chartered Bank Plans Licensed Operation in Hong Kong

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Swiss SEBA Bank Granted Conditional Approval in Hong Kong

According to Reuters, Swiss-based emerging crypto bank SEBA has received conditional approval from the Hong Kong securities regulator.

SEBA stated that once the final approval conditions are met and they obtain a license from the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong, SEBA will be able to engage in securities trading, including structured products related to cryptocurrencies, and provide custody and advisory services for digital assets and traditional securities.

As reported by Bloomberg on July 22, SEBA is looking to expand its staff in Singapore and Hong Kong from the current 7 employees to 20.

Established in 2018, SEBA is a startup bank focusing on blockchain and cryptocurrencies, so its move to establish crypto asset trading services in Hong Kong is not surprising.

Recently, Pong Huay Yee, Chairman of DBS Bank China, revealed in an interview that they have plans to apply for a crypto license in Hong Kong.

DBS Bank's Pong Huay Yee: Not Replicating Singapore Operations in Hong Kong

Pong Huay Yee mentioned in the interview that they hope to obtain a license to trade digital assets in Hong Kong but do not intend to replicate the ecosystem DBS Bank has established in Singapore.

He believes that traditional banks should have a positive attitude towards digital assets, which can help diversify asset classes and become part of users' investment portfolios. However, he also emphasized that digital assets should only represent a small portion of investment portfolios until the development of the crypto industry becomes clearer.

Pong Huay Yee did not explicitly mention FTX, but he noted that cryptocurrency exchanges have faced many regulatory issues in the past year, and DBS Bank seems to have benefited from this with exponential growth in related businesses.

Reports earlier indicated that DBS Bank had plans to apply for a license in Hong Kong as early as February this year, but there has been no action taken so far.

Recalling the February report: Custody Doubles Annually! DBS Bank Plans to Apply for Exchange License in Hong Kong

Regarding the Singapore crypto business that Pong Huay Yee mentioned not wanting to replicate, DBS Bank launched the DBS Digital Exchange in late 2020 in the country, primarily targeting corporate institutional clients and accredited investors. The platform offers tokenization and custody services for digital assets, as well as token trading services for cryptocurrencies such as BTC, ETH, BCH, DOT, ADA, and XRP.