HashKey IPO: China’s Industrial Capital Finds a Crypto Gateway in Hong Kong

Hong Kong’s licensed crypto trade HashKey will listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on December 17, changing into the town’s first publicly traded cryptocurrency trade.

This transfer indicators the formal entry of conventional Chinese industrial capital into the digital asset market.

Hong Kong’s Web3 Ambitions Face Their First Market Test

HashKey Holdings opened its public offering on December 9, with subscriptions operating by means of December 12. The worth vary is ready at HK$5.95 to HK$6.95 per share, concentrating on a complete of HK$1.67 billion (roughly $215 million). The firm will commerce beneath the inventory code 3887, with JPMorgan and Guotai Junan International serving as joint sponsors.

This itemizing represents greater than a company milestone—it serves as a litmus check for Hong Kong’s digital asset coverage framework. Since its 2022 “Virtual Asset Declaration,” Hong Kong has aggressively constructed out its regulatory infrastructure. This year alone, regulators accepted staking companies, tightened custody requirements, and unveiled stablecoin oversight guidelines. HashKey’s IPO provides the primary goal measure of how capital markets worth this regulatory experiment.

The shareholder construction deserves shut consideration. Lu Weiding, chairman of Wanxiang Group, holds the biggest stake, with 43.2%. Wanxiang ranks amongst China’s largest auto components producers, producing annual income of over 100 billion yuan.

Founder Xiao Feng, who beforehand constructed his profession in China’s asset administration trade earlier than pivoting early to blockchain, holds a 16.3% stake. Notably, Wanxiang and associated entities will retain over 60% of voting rights post-IPO, with solely 8.7% of shares accessible for public buying and selling.

With cryptocurrency buying and selling banned on the Chinese mainland, conventional industrial capital has successfully discovered a regulated gateway into crypto by means of Hong Kong. This dynamic illustrates the complicated relationship between Beijing’s restrictions and Hong Kong’s positioning as a compliant digital asset hub.

Red Ink Piles Up, however Institutional Backers Remain Unfazed

The financials inform a complicated story. HashKey has recorded roughly HK$2.9 billion in losses over the previous three and a half years, with 2024 losses totaling HK$1.19 billion. Yet buying and selling quantity surged from HK$4.2 billion in 2022 to HK$638.4 billion in 2024—a 150-fold enhance. This development attracted 9 cornerstone traders, together with UBS Asset Management, Fidelity, and CDH, who dedicated $75 million.

Not everyone seems to be satisfied. HashKey’s native token HSK plunged after launch, drawing sharp criticism on Chinese social media. Some traders query backing a loss-making firm in a unstable regulatory setting.

HashKey instructions over 75% market share in Hong Kong and manages HK$29 billion in staking property, the biggest in Asia. To scale back reliance on buying and selling charges, the corporate launched HashKey Chain, its personal Layer 2 community, and is increasing into real-world asset tokenization.

Whether Hong Kong’s licensed trade mannequin can compete globally stays an open query. Whether the Chinese capital’s crypto detour by means of the town proves viable is one other query. HashKey’s post-listing efficiency will present the primary solutions—not only for traders, however for regulators and rivals watching carefully throughout Asia.

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