First Tokenized Securities Issued in Hong Kong via Ethereum
BOCI issues China's first tokenized securities in Hong Kong on Ethereum blockchain.
On June 12, BOCI, the investment arm of Bank of China, reported the release of digital structured notes worth 200 million Chinese yuan ($28 million), minted on the Ethereum blockchain. This marks BOCI as the premier Chinese bank to issue tokenized securities in Hong Kong. UBS, the co-originator, assisted in placing the product for its Asia-Pacific clientele. Deputy CEO of BOCI, Ying Wang, stated the venture aims to simplify digital asset markets in the region.
Simultaneously, UBS has been broadening its tokenization across various financial products, including a $50 million tokenized fixed-rate note in December 2022.
Coinciding with these developments, Hong Kong has increased access for retail users to crypto exchanges since June 1. Additionally, the region's government plans to establish a stablecoin regulation framework within a year.
Hong Kong previously issued an HK$800 million green bond, tokenized on Goldman Sachs’ protocol GS DAP, yielding 4.05% annually. In December 2022, the region introduced two exchange-traded funds for crypto futures, securing over $70 million pre-launch.
