Hong Kong digital bank ZA Bank has expressed its readiness to serve companies issuing stablecoins. However, token issuers must obtain regulatory approval to operate in the country.

ZA Bank management reported that it is already negotiating with several industry companies. Custody accounts will be available to them after obtaining a license from the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA). The agency recently opened a regulatory sandbox for stablecoin issuers, allowing the regulator to receive comments from participants and stakeholders on how crypto assets should be regulated.

Deputy CEO of ZA Bank Devon Sin called stablecoins tools that can be used in different areas: retail, settlements and money transfers, as well as for asset tokenization. ZA Bank is interested in conducting research with issuers to explore use cases for stablecoins and implement them in real-world operational settings. Xing emphasized that ZA Bank is ready to contribute to the development of the Web3 sector, and in the future, ZA Bank may provide custody services for other assets.

This is not the first time ZA Bank has worked with cryptocurrencies and Web3. In 2023, the bank facilitated cryptocurrency transactions totaling $1 billion for more than 100 Web3 clients. According to ZA Bank, 80% of local virtual asset service providers (VASPs) are clients of the bank.

Let us recall that at the end of last year, the HKMA proposed amendments to the legislation to regulate issuers of stablecoins, obliging them to separate client funds from their own, as well as to have a sufficient amount of reserves.