港元稳定币 HKDAP 完成首轮公测，合规稳定币能否在美元主导的赛道中另辟蹊径？
- 核心观点：香港首批持牌稳定币发行人碇点金融科技已完成港元稳定币HKDAP在以太坊主网的交易测试，标志香港稳定币监管进入实施阶段。HKDAP定位于机构级应用，侧重跨境结算与RWA交易，与美元稳定币形成差异化发展路径。
- 关键要素：
- 碇点金融由渣打香港、香港电讯及Animoca Brands合资成立，于2025年4月获香港金管局首批稳定币发行人牌照（共2张），计划第二季度起分阶段发行HKDAP。
- 测试由OSL集团和PantherTrade作为授权分销商参与，验证了从发行商到机构用户再到个人用户的完整兑换、转账及赎回流通链路。
- HKDAP采用“B2B2C”发行模式，即面向授权分销商分销后由后者向公众开放，重点场景为跨境结算与支付及现实世界资产（RWA）链上结算。
- 另一获牌方汇丰银行计划下半年推出港元稳定币，初期聚焦个人对个人（P2P）付款、个人对商户（P2M）支付及代币化投资，偏向消费与银行场景。
- 港元稳定币与美元稳定币定位差异明显：后者源于链上金融避险与流动性需求，前者则更审慎地作为“监管先行”的金融基础设施，主攻RWA交易与合规结算媒介。
- 港元稳定币面临挑战：安全性高度依赖发行方合规运营与储备托管，未来若进入国际贸易结算等大型场景，需解决不同稳定币间流动性互通、清算协调及市场接受度问题。
Original Author: Shirley Li, Researcher at Web3Caff Research
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Compliance Note: The following content is solely an objective analysis of the formation characteristics and development of the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin HKDAP and does not constitute any proposal or offer. Please be aware that issuing or participating in the investment of tokens is subject to varying degrees of stringent regulatory requirements and restrictions in different countries and regions. In particular, issuing tokens in Mainland China may be considered "illegal issuance of securities," and providing services related to cryptocurrency transactions, such as token trading matching, is also considered "illegal financial activity" (Readers in Mainland China are strongly advised to read the Compilation and Key Points of Laws and Regulations Related to Blockchain and Virtual Currencies in Mainland China). Therefore, please do not use this information for decision-making, and strictly adhere to the laws and regulations of your country or region, refraining from participating in any illegal financial activities.
On May 13th, OSL Group, a stablecoin payment and trading platform; PantherTrade, a virtual asset trading platform under Futu Holdings; and Anchorpoint Financial Limited, a licensed stablecoin issuer in Hong Kong, jointly completed a transaction test on the Ethereum mainnet using the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin HKDAP as the settlement medium. This round of testing covered the conversion between fiat Hong Kong dollars and HKDAP, on-chain transfers, and redemption processes.
Anchorpoint Financial Limited is a subsidiary of Standard Chartered Bank (Hong Kong) Limited, jointly established in February 2025 by Standard Chartered Hong Kong, Hong Kong Telecommunications (HKT), and Animoca Brands. HKDAP (Hong Kong Dollar Anchor Point) is the first compliant Hong Kong dollar stablecoin it plans to launch.
On August 1, 2025, the Hong Kong Stablecoin Ordinance officially came into effect, providing a relatively clear regulatory framework for the issuance and operation of stablecoins (for further reading: Hong Kong Passes Stablecoin Ordinance Bill: What Impetus Will It Provide for Global Stablecoin Compliance and the RMB Internationalization Strategy?). In April of this year, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) granted the first batch of two stablecoin issuer licenses under this ordinance. It is reported that a total of 36 institutions applied in the initial batch, but only Anchorpoint Financial Limited and The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited (HSBC) received licenses. This licensing action is considered to have completed the regulatory closed loop of "legislation – review – licensing," and has advanced stablecoin regulation into the implementation and business preparation phase. [1]
Source: HSBC and Standard Chartered Subsidiaries Licensed, to Launch Hong Kong Dollar Stablecoins First
Among them, Anchorpoint Financial plans to launch the Hong Kong dollar-pegged stablecoin "HKDAP" in phases starting from the second quarter of this year, adopting a "B2B2C" issuance model. This involves distributing to designated authorized distributors, who then make it available to the public. In the test mentioned at the beginning of this article, OSL Group and PantherTrade, acting as authorized distributors of HKDAP, verified the complete circulation chain from the issuer to institutional users and then to individual users.
HSBC, on the other hand, plans to launch its own Hong Kong dollar stablecoin in the second half of this year and integrate it into its PayMe platform and HSBC HK Mobile Banking app.
Judging from the direction of the pilots, the focus of the two institutions differs slightly. HSBC plans to initially launch peer-to-peer (P2P) payments, person-to-merchant (P2M) payments, and services like tokenized investments. That is, HSBC will lean more towards scenarios related to general consumption and banking services. Meanwhile, Anchorpoint Financial will focus on areas including cross-border settlement and payment solutions, as well as on-chain settlement and distribution of RWA (Real World Assets), primarily targeting institutional-grade application scenarios.
From a macro perspective, despite both belonging to the stablecoin system, Hong Kong dollar stablecoins and the currently dominant US dollar stablecoins exhibit clear differences in their development paths and potential positioning. The underlying reason lies in the differing market environments and core needs from which they emerged.
In the early stages of Web3 industry development, the core role of US dollar stablecoins was to provide a safe-haven tool for highly volatile assets and act as a medium for on-chain trading. Subsequently, with the development of DeFi, on-chain derivatives, and other markets, US dollar stablecoins further became the foundational liquidity asset within the entire on-chain financial system. This highly financialized and globalized liquidity structure also makes the regulatory environment for the US dollar stablecoin system more complex.
In contrast, Hong Kong's current positioning of the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin is noticeably more cautious and leans more towards a "regulation-first" financial infrastructure path. Currently, the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin is primarily positioned as a vehicle for RWA transactions, serving as a trusted, stable, and compliant on-chain settlement medium for tokenized assets. From a longer-term perspective, the potential future directions for the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin may not be limited to the ongoing pilot areas like RWA transactions and merchant settlement, but could further extend to more challenging domains such as international trade settlement and cross-border payments.
However, unlike the fiat currency system backed by the government, the Hong Kong dollar stablecoin is fundamentally a stablecoin system issued by licensed companies and pegged to the fiat Hong Kong dollar. Therefore, its security is highly dependent on the compliant operations of the issuer and the actual custodianship of the underlying reserve assets.
If each licensed issuer only rolls out payment, settlement, and RWA services based on its own business, this relatively localized small financial closed loop would be more controllable and feasible in the initial stages. However, if Hong Kong dollar stablecoins were to further enter international trade settlement, cross-border payments, and larger-scale on-chain financial scenarios in the future, issues such as liquidity interoperability between different Hong Kong dollar stablecoins, clearing coordination, and market acceptance would gradually come to the fore.
Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, there are differences in the positioning of Hong Kong dollar stablecoins and US dollar stablecoins. Although US dollar stablecoins face complex regulatory issues, they have correspondingly accumulated deeper liquidity and a wider range of use cases. In contrast, Hong Kong dollar stablecoins are still in the phase of exploring practical application scenarios. That is to say, whether the HKDAP and other Hong Kong dollar stablecoin systems can truly succeed ultimately depends on whether they can generate sufficient network effects and produce enough genuine payment demand. Given the significant first-mover advantage already established by US dollar stablecoins, whether the Hong Kong model can carve a new path remains to be tested by time.
Key Points Structure Diagram:
References
[2] HSBC and Standard Chartered Subsidiaries Licensed, to Launch Hong Kong Dollar Stablecoins First
[4] Hong Kong Officially Ramps Up! In-depth Analysis of the First Batch of HKD Stablecoins - HKDAP
[5] 3 Licensed Firms Test Hong Kong's HKDAP Stablecoin on Ethereum
Disclaimer
This report is prepared by Web3Caff Research. The information contained herein is for reference purposes only and does not constitute any forecast, investment advice, proposal, or offer. Investors should not rely on such information to buy or sell any securities, cryptocurrencies, or adopt any investment strategy. The terminology used and views expressed in this report are intended to help understand industry trends and promote the responsible development of Web3, including the blockchain industry, and should not be construed as definitive legal opinions or the views of Web3Caff Research. The views in this report reflect only the personal opinions of the author as of the stated date, are independent of the position of Web3Caff Research, and are subject to change based on subsequent circumstances. The information and opinions contained in this report are derived from proprietary and non-proprietary sources deemed reliable by Web3Caff Research, but do not necessarily encompass all data, and their accuracy is not guaranteed. Therefore, Web3Caff Research makes no warranty of any kind regarding their accuracy and reliability and assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions arising in any other way (including liability to any person due to negligence). This report may contain "forward-looking" information, which may include predictions and forecasts; this article does not constitute a guarantee of any forecast. Whether to rely on the information contained in this report is entirely at the reader's own discretion. This report is for reference only and does not constitute investment advice, a proposal, or an offer to buy or sell any securities, cryptocurrencies, or adopt any investment strategy. Please strictly adhere to the relevant laws and regulations of your country or region.
