In a global first, Hong Kong opens secondary trading for tokenised public funds

The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has authorized the world's inaugural secondary trading of tokenized public funds, strengthening the city's role as a hub for tokenized finance. Retail investors can now exchange two tokenized money market funds – one denominated in Hong Kong dollars and the other in US dollars – through an SFC-licensed virtual asset trading platform (VATP).

Katie He, head of strategic business at China Asset Management (Hong Kong), highlighted that this update empowers investors with greater control over their funds, as trading is now available around the clock, including on weekends and public holidays.

The initiative is a joint effort between ChinaAMC (Hong Kong), a subsidiary of one of China's largest fund managers, and PantherTrade, a VATP operated by the fintech firm Futu Holdings. He emphasized that this innovation does not compromise the legal structure of public mutual funds or investor protection standards. The SFC repurposed existing regulations governing VATPs and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) to facilitate the trading of tokenized public funds.

Prior to this, investors could only gain access to these funds through primary dealings with fund managers during regular trading hours. He added that this advancement extends beyond the product itself, underscoring Hong Kong's institutional strength in compliant digital financial innovation and the market's execution capabilities. Elisa Ng, executive director of investment products at the SFC, stated that the new framework is a crucial building block in Hong Kong's evolving tokenization ecosystem.

This move comes as Hong Kong authorities and financial institutions intensify their efforts to expand tokenization, aiming to solidify the city's status as a fintech leader. HSBC, for instance, launched HSBCnio, a platform enabling clients' artificial intelligence tools to access authorized bank account and transaction data on a read-only basis, with the objective of integrating AI into treasury operations.

The Fintech Week x StartmeupHK 2026, scheduled to commence next week, is expected to attract over 45,000 attendees from across the globe.