Tech
Online Broker Futu Offers Cryptocurrency Trading in Hong Kong, With Nvidia and Alibaba Stock as Rewards
Futu Securities International, Hong Kong’s largest online broker, has launched retail cryptocurrency trading in the city, offering shares of Alibaba Holding Group AND Nvidia as a reward in an attempt to attract investors. Futu has begun allowing Hong Kong residents to trade Bitcoin and ether, the world’s two largest cryptocurrencies, directly on the brokerage platform using Hong Kong or U.S. dollars, the company announced Thursday.
The online retail broker said last month that it had received an upgrade to its securities license from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), allowing Futu to offer virtual asset trading services to both professional and retail clients in the city.
Futu’s move comes as Hong Kong seeks to boost its attractiveness as a business hub for virtual assets, with the city government launching a series of new cryptocurrency policy initiatives over the past two years, including a mandatory licensing regime for cryptocurrency exchanges.
In addition to offering cryptocurrency trading on its flagship brokerage app, Futu is also seeking a cryptocurrency trading license for its new PantherTrade platform. That platform is among 11 in Hong Kong that are currently “deemed licensed” for cryptocurrency trading, an arrangement that allows them to operate in the city while they await full approval from the SFC.
Hong Kong’s progress in becoming a crypto hub has encountered various challenges, including exit of the major global platforms and relatively low trading activity for cryptocurrency exchange-traded funds offered on local stock exchanges.
Futu is now offering a series of incentives to potential investors, amid a cryptocurrency bull market that has seen the price of bitcoin rise 45 percent this year.
Hong Kong investors who open accounts in August and deposit HK$10,000 (US$1,280) over the next 60 days can receive HK$600 worth of bitcoin, a HK$400 supermarket voucher or a single Chinese stock. e-commerce giant Alibaba. Alibaba owns the South China Morning Post.
By holding 80,000 U.S. dollars for the same period, users can get 1,000 Hong Kong dollars in bitcoin or a share of U.S. artificial intelligence (AI) chip maker Nvidia, whose shares have risen more than 140 percent this year.
A Futu representative said the brokerage firm will also waive cryptocurrency trading fees starting Thursday until further notice.
Futu is the first online brokerage in Hong Kong to allow retail investors to buy cryptocurrency directly on its platform. SFC rules require it to offer this service through a tie-up with a licensed cryptocurrency exchange. Futu is partnering with HashKey Exchange, one of only two licensed exchanges in Hong Kong, according to the representative.
Futu’s local rival Tiger Brokers also said in May that it had begun offering cryptocurrency trading services to professional investors on its platform following a license update. The SFC defines professional investors as those with more than HK$8 million in their investment portfolios or corporate entities with assets exceeding HK$40 million.