On August 1, 2025, Hong Kong officially implemented the "Stablecoin Ordinance", bringing stablecoins under the scope of licensed regulation. It is worth noting that on the eve of the ordinance coming into effect, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority released a series of regulatory guidelines and explanatory documents on July 29, providing market participants with a clearer execution framework and regulatory details.

The newly released documents include two regulatory guidelines and two explanatory documents, covering aspects such as the regulation of licensed stablecoin issuers, anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing, licensing systems, and transitional provisions. This marks Hong Kong's entry into the practical operational phase of stablecoin regulation, laying the foundation for future development.

The most noticeable aspect of the new regulations is the specific requirements for compliance enforcement. For example, stablecoin issuers need to conduct strict identity verification (KYC) for each compliant holder to ensure they are not from or providing stablecoin products to prohibited regions. At the same time, issuers must also take reasonable technical measures to identify and prevent the use of virtual private networks (VPNs). These requirements not only significantly increase operational difficulty but may also limit the application and expansion of stablecoins in real-world asset (RWA) scenarios.

The introduction of these new regulations will undoubtedly push stablecoins into a more stringent regulatory era. For relevant enterprises, this means they need to significantly enhance their compliance standards and technical capabilities within a short period. At the same time, how to maintain innovation and development under strict regulation will also become a major challenge facing enterprises.

With the implementation of the new stablecoin policy in Hong Kong, we can foresee that the stablecoin market will become more regulated in the future, but it may also face a certain degree of consolidation and reshuffling. Businesses need to closely monitor regulatory trends and actively adjust their strategies to adapt to this new regulatory environment.