HSBC Launches Crypto ETF Support Months After "Not Venturing Into Crypto"

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HSBC, or Hypocrites Support Banking Crypto, has U-turned on their infamously anti-crypto stance by enabling customers to trade cryptocurrency ETFs in Hong Kong.

Featured on HSBC's "Easy Invest" mobile app, the move aims to expand local users’ exposure to cryptocurrencies in Hong Kong. The ETFs, which include CSOP Bitcoin Futures ETF, CSOP Ethereum Futures ETF, and Samsung Bitcoin Futures Active ETF, are listed as securities.

HSBC will be the first bank in Hong Kong to offer this service, signalling a much friendlier approach towards crypto than before.

In December 2022, chief executive of HSBC, Noel Quinn, said the bank is "not getting into the crypto world, crypto trading, crypto exchanges."

"I do worry about the sustainability of the valuations of crypto, and I have done for a while. I'm not going to predict where it will go in the future," Quinn stated.

"As a product, I questioned its suitability for many of the consumers in the marketplace today. So that's why HSBC is more negative on crypto than other banks."

What's more, as recently as February, an HSBC spokesperson told Blockhead that it is "not venturing into cryptocurrency."

"The job postings reflect our appetite to explore the opportunities that blockchain, particularly asset tokenization, offers," the spokesperson said.

HSBC's crypto embrace comes as its peers also venture into the industry, and following pressure from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority on local banks to accept crypto exchanges as clients. BlackRock started the trend last week with its Bitcoin ETF application. WisdomTree, Invesco, and Valkyrie Digital Assets filed similar applications with the SEC shortly after.

Peer pressure perhaps?

Elsewhere:

We're excited to be part of @TheSandboxSG Singapore Partner Day! Catch us today at the 4:30 PM panel at the Sands Expo & Convention Centre, as we chat with other industry titans on the future of IPs and The Metaverse.

Announcing our moderator for our first panel, Mark Tan, the Founder & CEO of digital asset news platform @blockhead_co. He is also the founder of Rice Media, an APAC-focused digital media group headquartered in Singapore that produces cutting-edge content across a broad range… pic.twitter.com/TlsKk9AgHG
— The Sandbox Singapore (@TheSandboxSG) June 26, 2023

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