Standard Chartered expands digital finance footprint with Hong Kong ETF launch

Standard Chartered Hong Kong has announced its plans to launch ETF trading services in ￰0￱ bank’s upcoming virtual asset ETF offering is part of Hong Kong’s ongoing efforts to combine traditional finance with digital ￰1￱ Chartered Hong Kong is preparing to launch virtual asset exchange-traded fund (ETF) trading services next month as demand for digital asset investments grows ￰2￱ bank interviewed over 500 high-end clients, each holding at least HK$1 million (about $137,000) in liquid assets, as part of its Hong Kong High-end Customer Digital Asset Research 2025, which was conducted under the Digital Hong Kong Dollar + project by the Financial Administration ￰3￱ Chartered reacts to demand for digital assets The survey reported by local media revealed that three-quarters of respondents are interested in digital assets, and nearly 80% plan to invest in the sector over the next 12 ￰4￱ 30% already hold digital assets, and wealthier participants in the survey expressed that they have confidence in using digital assets to diversify their ￰5￱ said they typically start with small allocations, dedicating only a modest portion of their overall portfolios to cryptocurrencies or related ￰6￱ average, investors who already engage with digital assets use about 2.5 different investment platforms.

However, the survey also found that price volatility, platform security, and limited knowledge prevent more investors from ￰7￱ Weilin, Head of Customer and Data at Standard Chartered Hong Kong Digital Bank, said over 70% of respondents trust digital assets backed by local banks, showing rising confidence in regulated platforms. “The data show a strong appetite for new digital investment opportunities, particularly when offered within a secure and regulated environment,” Mac ￰8￱ Wenjun, the Head of Wealth Planning at Standard Chartered Hong Kong, confirmed that the bank would meet the demand for institution-backed trading with the launch in November.

“Clients are increasingly eager to participate in digital finance,” he ￰9￱ went on to say that integrating virtual asset ETFs into the bank’s platform would help provide more diversified asset and financial management ￰10￱ are considered a safer, more regulated way to trade digital assets than direct cryptocurrency ￰11￱ Kong’s digital finance strategy evolves At the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation ( APEC ) Finance Ministers’ Meeting in Incheon, South Korea, Hong Kong’s Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-po stated that the country is committed to supporting innovation in financial ￰12￱ highlighted how blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI) are transforming financial services by improving efficiency, reducing costs, and promoting inclusive ￰13￱ stated that for sustainable fintech growth, financial innovation must serve the real economy, innovation must be supported through regulatory flexibility, and responsible and sustainable development in digital finance should be ￰14￱ cited several local initiatives as examples to support his point, including the Hong Kong Monetary Authority’s ( HKMA ) “Commercial Data Interchange” ￰15￱ system allows small and medium-sized enterprises to share verified business data to improve access to financing, facilitating over 60,000 loan applications and more than HK$6.5 billion, approximately $845 million, loans to ￰16￱ his visit, Chan met with South Korea’s Deputy Prime Minister of Economy and Minister of Planning and Finance, Gu Yoon-cheol, to discuss enhanced cooperation in economic, trade, and financial ￰17￱ the meetings, Chan is scheduled to travel to Beijing to lead a government delegation inspecting the Beijing sub-center and Xiong’an New Area in Hebei ￰18￱ up to $30,050 in trading rewards when you join Bybit today