Hong Kong Monetary Authority Includes CBDC In Fintech Strategy

Research into CBDCs will play a crucial part in the fintech development endeavors of Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority has recently published its “Fintech 2025” strategy with CBDC, both retail and wholesale, included in the digital finance innovation package.

Divulging the fintech strategy by means of a release issued recently, central bank digital currencies will purportedly play a role in the city administration’s objective of encouraging overall digital finance espousal by 2025.

As per the announcement, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority is partnering with the BIS to explore a retail digital Hong Kong dollar currency. The aforementioned research is allegedly scrutinizing prospects, advantages and likely use cases of an e-HKD currency.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority also mentioned that it will keep on working with China’s central bank on cross-border use of the latter’s digital currency electronic payment project. Earlier in the month of May, Hong Kong was looking to broaden trial studies for the PBoC’s digital yuan.

In the thick of the backdrop of its broadened fintech focus, Hong Kong is also moving to limit access to digital assets. The Financial Services and Treasury Bureau of Hong Kong issued a policy suggestion back in May calling for the government to control digital asset trading to skilled investors with portfolios worth at least a million dollars.