Interactive Brokers Launched BTC, ETH Trading in Hong Kong for Professional Investors

Interactive Brokers, an automated global electronic broker, launched cryptocurrency trading in Hong Kong on Monday. Professional investors enlisted on the Interactive Brokers platform can trade bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH), it said in a press release. 

As per Hong Kong capital market guidelines, individuals with a minimum of HKD 8 million and institutions with a minimum of HKD 40 million in investible assets qualify for Professional Investor status, provided they are also residents of or incorporated in Hong Kong.

Unified Trading Experience

Integration of BTC and ETH trading on the Interactive Brokers’ platform will allow investors a “unified client experience” where they can trade digital assets “alongside many other global products from a single unified platform,” the company said. 

“Investor demand for digital assets continues to grow in Hong Kong and around the world, and we are pleased to introduce cryptocurrency to address the trading objectives of clients in this important market,” David Friedland, Head of APAC, Interactive Brokers, said.

With 0.20% to 0.30% of trade value as commission, cryptocurrency trading at Interactive Brokers Hong Kong could prove to be much cheaper, the company claimed in its PR, adding that the launch of these services comes at a time when a regulated digital asset market is evolving in Hong Kong.

“Investor demand for digital assets continues to grow in Hong Kong and around the world, and we are pleased to introduce cryptocurrency to address the trading objectives of clients in this important market,” said Friedland added.

Interactive Brokers offer centralized cash management to its client who can trade BTC and ETH as well as stocks, options, event contracts, mutual funds, and ETFs from the same screen. These services at Interactive Brokers are brought by OSL Digital Securities, a digital asset brokerage and trading platform for professional investors licensed by the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC).

Hong Kong Moving to Regulatory Clarity  

Hong Kong’s Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) is reportedly preparing a list of highly liquid whitelisted crypto assets for non-professional or retail investors. 

“Some virtual assets platforms have over 2,000 products, but we do not plan to allow retail investors to trade in all of them … We will set the criteria that would allow retail investors to [only] trade in major virtual assets,” Julia Leung Fung-yee said last month.

Through an amendment in December, the Hong Kong government brought the cryptocurrency industry under the purview of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Bill 2022, making it mandatory for crypto exchanges to obtain licenses before starting operations.