Despite the industry’s tarnished reputation, Hong Kong is sticking to its plan to become Asia’s digital-asset capital, a stance that has piqued the interest of bruised crypto firms looking for ways to recover. The city claims it will use the lessons of a $2 trillion crypto market rout and a string of global bankruptcies, such as the demise of the FTX exchange, to develop a new regulatory framework that will protect investors while also encouraging growth. The three-month-old shift toward fostering a crypto sector is part of a larger effort to reestablish Hong Kong’s credentials as a financial centre after previous Covid-related restrictions and political unrest caused a brain drain.
