The Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) official website confirmed that the number of licensed VATP holders in Hong Kong has risen to 13. On May 18, NewBX Limited’s Bixin received a Virtual Asset Trading Platform (VATP) operating license, allowing it to conduct Type 1 and Type 7 regulated activities. On May 20, 方德證券 and 方德資本 were approved by the SFC for newly added qualifications for virtual asset-related business.
Bixin’s VATP License: Confirmed Scope of Qualifications and Regulatory Registration
The SFC official website update confirmed that the VATP license approved for NewBX Limited includes the following verified regulatory qualifications: Type 1 (securities trading) and Type 7 (provision of automated trading services), and that the AMLO anti-money laundering-related registration has also been completed. Bixin initially submitted a VATP license application to the SFC on January 24, 2024, and this approval completed the conversion from applicant to licensed institution.
Since Hong Kong’s VATP licensing regime was established in 2023, licensed platforms have included OSL and HashKey, which obtained licenses earliest, followed by additional organizations receiving approvals. Bixin is the second newly added licensed platform as of 2026 (confirmed figures as of 2025 and early 2026: on February 18, VDX was approved, bringing the total to 12; on May 18, Bixin was approved, bringing the total to 13).
Three VA Business Qualifications for 方德: Side-by-Side Comparison of Approved Scopes for Two Subsidiaries
Two subsidiaries under 九方智投控股 (9636.HK) completed license-conditions upgrades on May 20, 2026. The specific qualification ranges confirmed by the SFC are as follows:
方德證券有限公司 (BGP713): Based on its existing licenses for Type 1 (securities trading), Type 2 (futures contract trading), Type 4 (advising on securities), and Type 5 (advising on futures contracts), it newly adds virtual asset business qualifications (covering VA trade execution and investment advisory).
方德資本有限公司 (BEL626): Based on its existing licenses for Type 1 (securities trading), Type 4 (advising on securities), and Type 9 (asset management), it newly adds virtual asset asset management business qualifications.
This dual-license structure makes 方德 one of the few institutions in Hong Kong’s market that has obtained VA business qualifications under regulated activities spanning Types 1, 4, and 9 at the same time. In theory, it possesses the licensing basis to provide, within the same compliance framework, three categories of services: VA trade execution, investment advisory, and asset management.
Two Compliance Paths for Hong Kong’s Licensed VA Ecosystem
Hong Kong’s currently licensed virtual-asset ecosystem consists of two different regulatory paths. Bixin and 方德 each represent two distinct compliance frameworks:
· The first category is virtual asset trading platforms holding VATP licenses—such as OSL, HashKey, VDX, and Bixin—whose core is the trading functionality that matches users to buy and sell virtual assets, and which are directly subject to the SFC’s VATP regulatory regime.
· The second category is licensed institutions that obtain VA business qualifications based on traditional securities licenses—such as 方德. Its virtual asset services are an extension of the traditional Type 1, 4, and 9 regulated activities, managed within the SFC’s existing securities regulatory framework. The two paths correspond to different compliance obligations, capital requirements, and service scopes, so investors need to distinguish the regulatory background when choosing a platform.
Frequently Asked Questions
After the total number of licensed VATP holders in Hong Kong reached 13, what is the current status of the six applicants still under review?
As of May 2026, six institutions remain in the review stage among the SFC’s official applicant list. The SFC’s VATP application review covers multiple assessments, including compliance systems, anti-money laundering mechanisms, capital adequacy ratios, and investor protection measures. Review timelines vary depending on the institution’s preparation level. Before approval, applicants may not publicly promote themselves as licensed institutions externally, but they can be searched publicly in the SFC’s applicants list on its official website.
What specific impact does the combination of Type 1 and Type 7 licenses have on Bixin’s business scope?
The Type 1 (securities trading) license allows Bixin to provide clients with virtual asset buy-sell matching services, covering tokens recognized as securities within the SFC framework. The Type 7 (provision of automated trading services) license allows it to operate an automated trading system, providing electronic matching functionality to the market. The combination of the two qualifications is the standard requirement combination that the SFC sets for VATP applicant institutions, ensuring that the platform has compliance credentials for both trade execution and system operation.
After 方德 under 九方智投 obtains VA business qualifications, what is the fundamental difference in the services provided compared with pure VATP-licensed platforms (such as Bixin)?
The core function of a pure VATP-licensed platform (such as Bixin) is virtual asset buy-sell matching, directly governed by the VATP regulatory regime, and typically does not extend to systematic investment advisory or asset management services. 方德’s difference is that its VA business qualifications are layered on top of its Type 4 (advising on securities) and Type 9 (asset management) licenses, enabling it to provide both VA investment advisory recommendations and VA asset management services within the compliance framework—integrating virtual assets into a cross-asset allocation services system, rather than being limited to a trading-channel function.
