In a significant growth regarding crypto asset safety, Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Fee (SFC) has flagged 33 new suspicious web sites falsely claiming to be affiliated with HashKey, a licensed cryptocurrency buying and selling platform within the area.
This announcement will increase the variety of reported HashKey impersonators to 45. In line with the SFC, these fraudulent platforms used minor alterations in official hyperlinks related to HashKey in an try to deceive potential traders.
HashKey Response And Escalating Issues in Hong Kong Crypto Market
HashKey, certainly one of only some SFC-approved crypto exchanges, was fast to disassociate itself from these fraudulent entities. In an official assertion, the change emphasised that it had no reference to the impersonation platforms, reinforcing the necessity for shoppers to confirm hyperlinks and stay cautious. The assertion learn:
To mislead shoppers, fraudulent web sites will seem below completely different domains or with slight modifications or variations of the official HashKey Change web site handle www.hashkey.com by including a mixture of letters, numbers or symbols. HashKey Change declares that it has no reference to the aforementioned fraudulent web sites. The web sites are usually not affiliated with HashKey Change or its associates in any way. As such, we is not going to settle for legal responsibility for any issues regarding the web sites.
Notably, over the previous three years, the SFC has been actively monitoring the cryptocurrency market in Hong Kong, figuring out at the very least 91 suspicious buying and selling platforms so far.
This concern is a part of a broader regulatory problem confronted by Hong Kong authorities because the native crypto market matures. The scenario echoes the current collapse of JPEX, a digital forex platform accused of working and not using a license and defrauding round 2,000 traders of 1.3 billion Hong Kong {dollars} (roughly $166 million).
The burden of the scandal aftermath highlighted the significance of “rigorous oversight” and immediate motion in opposition to unlicensed operators.
Hong Kong Points New Operational Licenses
In the meantime, Hong Kong continues to broaden its regulated crypto ecosystem by introducing new operational licenses for digital asset platforms.
Earlier this week, the SFC introduced the approval of two extra Hong Kong-based exchanges—PantherTrade and YAX—rising the whole variety of licensed platforms by two because the regulator initiated its licensing program in 2024.
Publicly obtainable data from the Hong Kong authorities verify that these newly licensed platforms are registered below the Anti-Cash Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Ordinance (AMLO), which serves because the regulatory framework for digital asset buying and selling platforms within the area.
For the reason that introduction of this regulatory measure in 2020, 10 crypto exchanges have obtained formal registrations, permitting them to function legally inside Hong Kong.
Featured picture created with DALL-E, Chart from TradingView
