Hong Kong’s financial watchdog to clamp down on crypto trading fraud

China's Securities Regulatory Commission (SRC) has disclosed its plans to combat illegal cryptocurrency trading, as well as strengthen its supervision over digital assets and unlicensed cryptocurrency transactions.

The deputy chief executive of the SRC, Liang Fengiy, said that there are still many cases of virtual asset fraud in the crypto space. And since cryptocurrencies and digital assets, in general, are not within the jurisdiction of China's SRC, investors stand the risk of losing their money to fraud.

The commission is looking to supervise the crypto industry by launching a transaction database that will be used to track and report illegal transactions related to money laundering or illegal funding activities. It also plans to license companies and projects to allow them to function legally.

In addition to cracking down on unlicensed trading, the SRC intends to encourage financial education among cryptocurrency investors.

The Hong Kong police department previously cracked down on Sing Gao Bulk market-making group, leading to the arrest of 12 individuals and the confiscation of over HK$900 million worth of property. Early this year, the government made moves to exclude retail traders from accessing Bitcoin and crypto.

According to the CEO of the Chinese Securities Regulatory Commission, the Global Central Bank adopted a Q&A (Quantitative Easing) policy since the start of the pandemic last year. A Q&A policy usually has a bullish effect on both the stock and digital assets markets.