MR CHAN KIN-POR (in Chinese): It is learnt that in recent years, digital assets such as non-fungible tokens (“NFTs”) and virtual currencies have attracted the attention of quite a number of Hong Kong investors. This type of assets can be traded on quite a number of overseas online platforms. Owing to such assets’ extremely volatile prices and their characteristics of anonymity and decentralization, the trading of such assets is susceptible to being used by lawbreakers in the absence of regulation. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
- whether it has grasped the current situation of NFTs trading in Hong Kong; if so, whether it will publish the relevant information; if it will not publish such information, of the reasons for that;
- of the trend in the past three years in respect of those crimes involving NFTs and virtual currencies;
- whether it has plans to regulate the trading of NFTs to prevent such trading from becoming tools for money laundering and terrorist financing; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; and
- whether it will actively take measures to raise public vigilance against the risks involved in trading digital assets such as NFTs and virtual currencies; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that?
The written reply provided by the Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury on 16 February 2022 is in Appendix.