Circle CEO calls Hong Kong an important market for USDC stablecoin

What’s new? The co-founder and CEO of Circle, which issues the second-largest stablecoin in the USDC crypto market with a capitalization of $34,9 billion, has called Hong Kong an important market for the company. Jeremy Allaire said Circle is awaiting the implementation of new regulations for stablecoin issuers to apply for a license, and also plans to launch a local branch.

Material by Hong Kong Economic Journal

What else is known? The Hong Kong government intends to submit the stablecoin issuance system to the Legislative Council before the end of the year. Hong Kong has great advantages in developing stablecoins, including the ability to make same-day settlement in US dollars, it is also the largest capital market in the Asia-Pacific region.

Earlier, the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau noted that Hong Kong was one of the first countries in the world to license platforms for trading virtual assets. The authorities will continue to improve the regulatory framework in line with the development of the market.

In turn, the Monetary Authority (HKMA), which acts as the central bank, will consult with the banking industry to develop regulations on virtual asset custody services to ensure customer protection.

The department also reported that many European enterprises in the Web 3.0 sector are interested in developing business in Hong Kong with the prospect of entering the market of mainland China, which is facilitated by clear and stable regulation.

In late October, the Hong Kong Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau announced the introduction of tax incentives on crypto investments for private foundations and family offices.

Hong Kong Stock Exchange to launch bitcoin and Ethereum price indices

As for Circle’s USDC, the asset ranks sixth in the overall cryptocurrency ranking and second in the list of stablecoins by market capitalization. This figure for USDC has grown by 41,3% over the year.

The asset is available on Ethereum, Solana, Base, Arbitrum, Polkadot, Polygon, Stellar, Sui, zkSync, Op Mainnet, Noble, NEAR, Hedera, Celo, Avalanche, and Algorand.

Hong Kong Stock Exchange to launch bitcoin and Ethereum price indices

They will provide a single benchmark price for crypto assets across time zones in Asia

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In September, Circle entered into a partnership with Sony Block Solutions Labs. The parties will implement USDC on Sony Corporation’s blockchain called Soneium.

In August, Jeremy Allaire announced the imminent launch of USDC contactless payments on the iPhone. In June, he predicted exponential growth in stablecoin adoption over the next ten years.