Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission has launched a pilot framework to enable secondary trading of tokenised SFC-authorised investment products on licensed platforms.
Set out in a circular, the framework primarily targets secondary trading of tokenised SFC-authorised open-ended funds on SFC-licensed VATPs, with the stated aim of broadening retail investor access to regulated trading services. The SFC has also indicated it may consider over-the-counter secondary trading arrangements on a case-by-case basis.
The SFC first outlined its tokenisation-related regulatory framework in late 2023. Since then, product issuers in Hong Kong have shown considerable interest in tokenising their offerings. As of March 2026, 13 tokenised products were available to the public in Hong Kong, with assets under management in their tokenised classes rising approximately seven-fold over the preceding year to reach USD 10.7 billion.
Against this backdrop, the regulator has identified the current moment as appropriate to pilot round-the-clock secondary trading, including through the potential use of regulated stablecoins and tokenised deposits as settlement instruments.
Framework design and safeguards
The framework draws on structural elements from existing exchange-traded fund regulation and the infrastructure of SFC-licensed VATPs. Specific measures address pricing fairness, orderly trading, liquidity provision, and disclosure obligations, considerations the SFC identified as particularly relevant given the liquidity characteristics of open-ended funds and the risk of trading outside the regular operating hours of underlying securities.
The initial product scope is expected to focus on tokenised money market funds. The SFC has indicated it will review operational outcomes before considering whether to expand the range of eligible products.
A company official described the framework as a milestone in Hong Kong's development of a digital asset ecosystem that integrates traditional securities products with Web3 infrastructure. In addition, the official noted that a tokenised product could, under the new framework, be traded during evenings and weekends, with round-the-clock liquidity supported by regulated stablecoins and tokenised deposits.
Product issuers and intermediaries, including SFC-licensed VATPs, are encouraged to consult or notify the regulator in advance of activities related to the framework.
The development reflects broader regulatory momentum across Asia-Pacific, where several jurisdictions have been refining their approaches to digital asset regulation and tokenised financial instruments. Hong Kong's step towards 24/7 trading infrastructure for tokenised funds represents a notable convergence between traditional investment product frameworks and virtual asset market structure.
