Huobi applies for a licence in Hong Kong

The founder of Tron, Justin Sun, announced that the cryptocurrency exchange Huobi has submitted a licence application in Hong Kong.

Big news for crypto today: @HuobiGlobal has announced that it’s applying for a crypto trading license in Hong Kong🇭🇰! This is a major step for the major cryptocurrency exchange and a sign of its continued commitment to operating in a compliant and regulated manner. 🇨🇳

— H.E. Justin Sun🇬🇩🇩🇲🔥₮ (@justinsuntron) February 20, 2023

With the new licence, Huobi will be able to expand its services and offerings for clients in Hong Kong, providing a broader range of crypto trading and investment options,’ he wrote.

Sun said that the company is also launching a new exchange in the jurisdiction — Huobi Hong Kong. According to him, the trading platform will be ‘fully compliant with local rules’.

‘The new exchange will focus on providing trading services to institutional investors and high-net-worth individuals in Hong Kong. It is positioned as a reliable and secure platform for large investors in Asia seeking to enter the crypto market,’ Sun wrote.

Huobi’s own token HT reacted to the news with a sharp rally. In the last 24 hours the asset rose 16.2%, according to CoinGecko. At the time of writing HT was trading near the $6 mark.

Earlier Huobi agreed to sell a controlling stake in the Hong Kong-based investment company About Capital Management.

In November 2022 the exchange announced a rebrand, as a result of which it dropped the official name Huobi Global, and denied rumors of a possible merger with Poloniex.

In February 2023 the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission launched public consultations on new requirements for operators of platforms trading digital assets.