OKX, the prominent crypto exchange, has announced that it will cease its digital asset trading services in Hong Kong by the end of this month. The decision to withdraw its application for a virtual asset trading platform license in Hong Kong was made after careful consideration of the business development prospects, according to OKX. While trading services will no longer be provided from May 31st, customers will still be able to make withdrawals. Additionally, OKX’s web3 self-hosted wallet will continue to offer services to its customers.
OKX is among ten crypto exchanges that have withdrawn their trading platform license applications in the special administrative region. In late February, the Justin Sun-affiliated trading giant HTX also pulled its application, although it reapplied shortly after but withdrew it again earlier this month, as reported by the South China Morning Post (SCMP).
Currently, the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the financial regulator of the special administrative region, has only licensed two crypto trading platforms, while 18 other exchanges are awaiting decisions on their applications.
Last June, Hong Kong introduced new regulations for crypto exchanges, which some digital asset stakeholders argue are burdensome for trading platforms, according to an SCMP report.
Headquartered in the Seychelles, OKX is currently the third-largest crypto exchange based on 24-hour trading volume, with Binance and Bybit being the only platforms ahead of it, according to CoinGecko.
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