HSBC Holdings and a joint venture led by Standard Chartered are reportedly set to become the first authorized stablecoin issuers in Hong Kong.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) is expected to issue stablecoin licenses to HSBC and Standard Chartered, the South China Morning Post reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter. HSBC and Standard Chartered are set to be in the first batch as authorities reportedly prioritize institutions already authorized to issue banknotes in the city.
The Hong Kong government, through the HKMA, authorizes banknote issuance to three commercial banks, including local branches of HSBC, Standard Chartered and the Bank of China.
The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has not confirmed the names of any successful applicants. Standard Chartered declined to comment, and HSBC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The approvals would mark a major step toward Hong Kong’s ambition to become a global digital asset hub despite neighboring mainland China reportedly making it harder to launch stablecoins in the region.
HKMA targets the first stablecoin licenses in March
According to the SCMP, the number of licenses and timetable had yet to be finalized and remained subject to change, but the sources indicated a possible date on March 24.
Though unconfirmed, potential stablecoin issuer licenses for HSBC and Standard Chartered would align with earlier reports that the HKMA planned to grant the first licenses in March 2026.
HKMA Chief Executive Eddie Yue said in February that the regulator expects the first batch of stablecoin issuer licenses to include a “very small number” of issuers.
If confirmed, Hong Kong’s strategic selection of note-issuing banks for the first batch of stablecoin licenses represents a major step in legal engineering, a spokesperson for the global firm Icon.Partners told Cointelegraph.
“It bypasses the trust gap of native crypto issuers by using institutions that already underpin the Hong Kong dollar,” Icon.Partners said.
Related: China’s Alibaba joins stablecoin platform MetaComp’s $35M fundraise
The Hong Kong government enforced the Stablecoin Ordinance, a statutory framework for regulating stablecoins, in August 2025, making it illegal to offer or promote unlicensed fiat-referenced stablecoins to retail investors.
In September, the HKMA said it received applications from 36 institutions for a license to issue stablecoins. HSBC and Standard Chartered were among the institutions that were reported to be planning to apply, alongside the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China.
Magazine: China’s ‘50x’ blockchain boost, Alibaba-linked AI mines Bitcoin: Asia Express