On September 25, the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission announced that it would soon publish a list of companies that have applied for retail investors to provide cryptocurrency trading service licenses. Previously, regulators were reluctant to make this information public, but in the face of strong public reaction to the JPEX collapse, regulators have now decided to change their stance.

Securities Regulatory Commission chief executive Leung Fengyi said at a press conference that the list of these companies would be made public based on public demand. She further added that just being an applicant does not mean that these companies have fully complied with all the regulations of the Securities Regulatory Commission.

Since the Securities and Futures Commission’s new virtual asset rules came into effect on June 1, only two companies, OSL Digital Securities Limited and Hash Blockchain Limited, have obtained licenses to provide services to retail customers in Hong Kong. Four companies, including HKVAX, HKBitEx, Hong Kong BGE Limited and Victory Fintech Company Limited, have submitted applications. Next, let’s first talk about the background of these four platforms:

1、HKVAX

Hong Kong Virtual Asset Exchange (HKVAX) has received in-principle approval from the Securities and Futures Commission, ahead of three other companies. According to its official website press release, once the regulatory procedures are completed, HKVAX will provide users with three core products including over-the-counter brokerage, institutional-level trading platforms and custody solutions. Co-founder and operating director Huo Zhaoliang said that their application process has taken three years and it is expected to take up to half a year to obtain a formal license.

2、Victory Fintech

Victory Fintech Company Limited is a company invested by Victory Securities. The company's executive directors include Gao Juan, chairman of the Hong Kong Securities Association. Victory Securities has been active in the field of virtual asset investment in recent years and holds multiple China Securities Regulatory Commission licenses. The official website of Victory Securities announced that its virtual asset trading APP is the first compliant virtual asset trading app in the Hong Kong financial market.

3、HKbitEX

HKbitEX was established in 2019 and was founded by a number of former senior executives of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, including founder Gao Han. In 2020, HKbitEX successfully completed an A2 round of financing of US$10 million. HKbitEX is committed to providing a compliant and regulated digital asset spot trading platform and over-the-counter trading platform for global professional investors.

4、HKBGE

HKBGE is a subsidiary of HKE Holdings Limited, established on April 19, 2021. HKBGE wholly owns HKBGE TSP Limited, which obtained a TCSP license in September 2021 to provide virtual asset custody services for HKBGE’s trading platform. According to reports, the market value of HKE Holdings, the parent company of HKBGE, is approximately 2.3 billion yuan, and the company’s chairman and major shareholder is Lian Haomin.

It is worth noting that there is speculation that Lian Haomin is the son of Lian Zhuozhao, known as the "King of Gambling on the High Seas", but this information has not been confirmed. Therefore, among these four companies, the most interesting one is undoubtedly the background of HKBGE. Although the current public may not be familiar with this name, it also reflects that in the financial market, especially in the crypto circle, which is an innovative, high-risk and high-return track, the background of its practitioners is often more complex than in other industries. , and comes with unknown risks.

All in all, regardless of whether HKBGE’s background is related to the King of Gambling on the High Seas, we need to understand that both the traditional gambling industry and emerging cryptocurrency trading platforms face a variety of legal and regulatory issues. When investing in or participating in these activities, it is crucial to understand the relevant background information and legal regulations to ensure that legal and compliant paths are followed and avoid unnecessary risks and problems.