With Hong Kong’s lucrative policies on crypto, DBS Bank Hong Kong has taken some ambitious decisions to establish its crypto services in the region.
Hong Kong added another feather to its cap in its journey to become a crypto hub, as the top bank DBS Group announced its plans to extend its crypto services to the region. According to a recent report, DBS Bank Hong Kong intends to apply for a license that would enable it to provide Hong Kong customers with crypto trading services.
DBS Bank Hong Kong CEO Sebastian Paredes said, “We are planning to apply for a license in Hong Kong so that the bank could sell digital assets to our Hong Kong customers.” He also stated that DBS Bank was extremely attentive to the dangers linked with digital assets and that it supports the new crypto-related legislation in Hong Kong. He also conveyed that DBS Bank was eager to be among the first lenders for crypto in Hong Kong once they understood the new rules clearly.
DBS has had a great year monetarily. It reported a 20% increase in net profit to 8.19 billion SGD($6.7 billion) in 2022. For the first time ever, total revenue exceeded 16 billion SGD. The announcement for crypto services in Hong Kong was made when DBS had clearly recovered steeply from its stress during the pandemic.
In December 2022, lawmakers in Hong Kong approved some amendments in the laws for crypto firms in the region. The new regulatory framework was intended to provide crypto firms the same level of market acceptance as the one already in place for traditional financial institutions.
DBS has taken several positive steps for the crypto industry, including setting up an institutional crypto exchange, using decentralized finance technologies in collaborative initiatives with Singapore’s central bank, and expanding its crypto platform to individual investors.