On Thursday, three sources told the Financial Times that Hong Kong’s banking regulator is pressuring HSBC (HSBA.L) and Standard Chartered (STAN.L) to allow crypto exchanges as clients.
The newspaper reported that the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) questioned UK-based lenders and the Bank of China last month about why crypto exchanges were not allowed, clients.
HSBC, Standard Chartered, and the HKMA did not immediately respond to Reuters inquiries.
The HKMA told lenders on April 27 that diligence on potential customers should not “create undue burden,” especially “for those setting up an office in Hong Kong,” the FT said.
Hong Kong’s push for banks to accept crypto clients comes as countries like the U.S. crackdown on crypto exchanges, with Binance’s U.S. affiliate suspending dollar deposits last week after the SEC requested a court freeze its assets.