UBS Opens Trading In Three Crypto ETFs To Wealthy Clients Via Hong Kong

UBS Opens Trading In Three Crypto ETFs To Wealthy Clients Via Hong Kong – Bloomberg

Updated: 10 November 2023

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Wealthy UBS clients are now able to invest in three crypto ETFs (exchange-traded funds) via the Swiss banking giant’s Hong Kong platform, Bloomberg reported.

The three crypto ETFs are CSOP Bitcoin Futures, Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active, and CSOP Ether Futures, all authorized by Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the report said, citing a person familiar with the matter.

The three products currently have assets under management of about $72 million, it said. The move enables UBS to join rivals including HSBC that are already offering crypto ETFs to clients in Hong Kong.

UBS Group AG joined rivals such as HSBC Holdings Plc in allowing clients in Hong Kong to trade some crypto-linked ETF. Three crypto ETFs authorized by the Securities and Futures Commission will be accessible to wealthy clients on UBS’s Hong Kong platform from Friday. BBG…

— Wu Blockchain (@WuBlockchain) November 10, 2023

Hong Kong Already Allowed Futures-Based Crypto ETFs

Hong Kong had already made futures-based ETFs available to investors and is assessing whether to allow spot crypto ETFs, Bloomberg said.

The move represents another step in Hong Kong’s ambitions to become one of the word’s largest virtual asset hubs. In June, it introduced a new licensing system to regulate cryptocurrency exchanges that offer trading in popular tokens like Bitcoin and Ether.

That goal’s suffered a setback recently after the JPEX crypto exchange scandal hurt the city’s image.

In response, Hong Kong tightened scrutiny of the crypto industry and established a joint task force consisting of the local police and the securities regulator to monitor the sector for suspicious activity.

Hong Kong is the world’s most crypto-ready destination, securing top spot for the second consecutive year in a ranking by Forex Suggest in September.

The ranking is determined based on factors including the presence and accessibility of cryptocurrency ATMs, the existence of a pro-crypto regulatory framework, the vibrancy of the startup culture, and a fair and equitable tax regime, said Forex Suggest, a foreign exchange education platform.

Hong Kong clinched the top spot with a Crypto Readiness Score (CRS) of 8.36. Switzerland took second place after the US dropped one place to third this year.