Hong Kong plans to teach students crypto trading
Date: 2023-07-10 Author: Karina Ziganova Categories: BLOCKCHAIN, IN WORLD
The Hong Kong Securities and Investment Institute (HKSII) plans to start training crypto traders.
The HKSII is responsible for training and conducting licensing examinations for brokers and asset managers in Hong Kong. Now, the financial school will take on the task of training a new generation of licensed crypto traders.
HKSII will teach students how to properly handle digital assets
This week, HKSII Chairman Colin Shaftesley revealed that the institute will hold a series of training programs and seminars on digital assets in the next few months. The schedule of upcoming events already includes several topics — for example, "How digital assets can coexist in the IT architecture of traditional finance."
A separate page on the HKSII website is dedicated to the new licensing regime for virtual asset trading platforms in Hong Kong. The Institute is developing new examination and training programs to support it, which will be announced shortly.
According to Shaftesley, the new rules have given confidence in the development of the cryptocurrency ecosystem in Hong Kong. He also added that young people are particularly interested in pursuing careers in the sector.
The regulator approves the trading of cryptocurrencies
The HKSII is the key licensing authority for the city's financial services sector. As such, it is closely associated with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (HKSFC).
In accordance with the city's regulation, the HKSFC is responsible for overseeing the crypto business and plays an important role in shaping the sector.
Last month, the head of the HKSFC, Julia Leung Fung-Yee, said that cryptocurrency trading is central to the thriving virtual asset ecosystem. She discussed the new regulatory framework and noted that Hong Kong owes the rapid development of the crypto industry to the Chinese approach, known as "One Country, Two Systems".
Focus on CBDCs and stablecoins
Many applicants to the new HKSII program will be interested in a career related to cryptocurrency trading. However, the growing importance of digital assets will also affect jobs in the financial services industry. For the 277,000 people employed in the sector, blockchain technologies, including stablecoins and CBDCs, will also be key.
Hong Kong is currently piloting a central bank digital currency. Looking to a future where Hong Kong dollars go digital, stakeholders are exploring the opportunities offered by this technology. For example, Ripple Labs was engaged by the HKMA to study how CBDCs could be used in real estate tokenization.
However, Hong Kong's businesses still have to rely on other forms of digital currency. For this reason, stablecoins pegged to the US dollar are used for many transactions, especially international ones. Currently, they are not included in Hong Kong's virtual asset regime. But the government has said it hopes to publish new rules on stablecoins by the end of the year.
